Overwatch: A Dawg's Tale
by SkorchNTorch
Summary: Meet Mad Dawg. He's been stabbed, shot, blown up, emotionally crippled, physically crippled, had his heart ripped out (more than once), poisoned, had his ribs shattered, his spine shattered, and happens to be part of a team of heroes. Honestly, his life isn't what ANYONE would call normal. So follow along as Dawg navigates his way through the hero life, as well as his shady past...
1. Waking Up

**A.N. 'Mad Dawg' is a character I created out of boredom. His powers and origins will be explained as the story goes on, but he's kinda like Deadpool. A wise-cracking, fourth-wall-breaking guy. This story isn't nearly as 'serious' as other Overwatch stories you may find, and it will contain references to other franchises. No crossovers, just little things.**

Mad Dawg groaned as he woke up, his head still dizzy from last night's party.

 _Man Lucio's album release parties are the best!_ He thought when he finally remembered what had happened the night before, however, we the audience have no idea who Mad Dawg is, why he was at Lucio's album release party, and where he currently is. In fact, neither does Mad Dawg himself. In fact, Mad Dawg was very confused as t what was happening currently.

"Thanks narrator. Do my freaking job for me why don't'cha?" Mad Dawg muttered. Looking around he was slightly unnerved. He was lying on a table in a dark room, in fact, whoever built this place seemingly had no idea what "Indoor lighting" was.

 _Well, I'm not at the train yard… Wait. Did I leave my pop tarts in the microwave?_

Yes he did. Back at his home, three chocolate fudge pop tars sat in a microwave, uneaten and growing cold.

 _DAMN IT!_

Finally getting up fully, Mad Dawg tried to stand on the floor… and immediately fell face-forward. He realized that his body was probably still waking up from the party and he most like didn't have all his strength back. So he begrudgingly dragged himself up and back onto the table, which he now realized was actually a bed.

 _Did I realize that or were you to lazy to change what you typed three paragraphs ago?_ Mad Dawg thought.

Suddenly, the bed was filled with mutant scorpions, all of which began viciously stinging and jabbing at Mad Dawg's-

 _OKAY!_ Mad Dawg inwardly shouted annoyed. _I'm sorry! Can you please let me sleep?_

There were no scorpions. Lying back on the bed (or table, you the viewer decide) Mad Dawg found it wasn't that hard to drift back off, a nice change from his recent paranoia-filled sleep-deprived nights. However, while he slept, two men watched. (creepy right? It's like two Michael Jackson's for the rice of one! But seriously, MJ isn't that great a musician and he was a horrible person.) One of the two wore a weird skull mask that looked slightly like the outline of Default's mask from Watch_Dogs. The other man was significantly taller and had a giant robot arm over his right arm.

"You really think **_HE_** is strong enough to be of any use to us?" The man with the skull mask asked.

"Perhaps not in his current state." The other man commented. "But with some… Adjustments, he may be what we need to set our plans into action."

Several hours passed until Mad Dawg woke up again, this time. He felt a lot better, he saw that his crocs and messenger bag were sitting near a wall. Walking over and grabbing his gear he realized something.

"Where the hell's the door?" He said aloud, confused. Almost immediately after saying that, a door opened with a _pshh_.

"No. No. No, no, no, no, no, NO." He exclaimed pointing to the now-open door. "I'm not **_THAT_** stupid!" He then looked around and saw there was no air vent or window of any sort. "Crap." He said hanging his head defeated. Sighing, he left through the door. Reaching into his bag, he pulled a crossbow out and loaded it, ready for a surprise attack. As he continued down the hall, he sowre he heard a low voice laughing manically. Deciding he'd rather listen to something god, he pulled a tape player out and pushed play.

 _Sun is shinin' in the sky! There ain't a cloud in sight…_

As he continued down the hall he _KNEW_ someone was following him. He moved a little faster, but knew the footsteps were right behind him. So he stopped, he herd a strange noise and grabbed his crossbow and spun around, ready to fire.

"Espera, niño!" A female voice exclaimed.

"I don't speak taco!" Mad Dawg yelled. He now saw the woman in front of him was drastically older than he was, at least 10 years. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY HEART!? DID YOU REPLACE IT WITH A CAR BATTERY OR SOMETHING?!"

"Kid! Calm down!" The woman exclaimed. "We didn't do anything! We found you passed out and- wait. Why'd you think we replaced your heart with a car battery?"

"I had a real bad experience with some Chinese monks once. Don't like talking about it." He replied. "Now, you wanna tell me where I am, who you are, and who took my clothes off?"

"Why does the third part matter?" The woman asked.

"Cause if a guy did it, I'm gonna feel violated. If it was a woman, I'll feel less violated."

"Your in a hidden base, somewhere off Dorado. My name's Sombra, and I don't know who changed you." Sombra listed off her replies. "Now can you please put the crossbow down ese?"

Mad Dawg looked at Sombra for a few moments before lowering his crossbow. He looked around at the hallway before turning back to Sombra.

"Who are you with? If you've got a underground base your most likely with some sorta group like S.H.E.I.L.D. or Dedsec." He began very slowly backing away nervously.

 _This kid's smart…_ Sombra thought. _But if I tell him who we really are, he's going to run._ Then she heard Akande's voice on her comm.

"Sombra. We don't have time for this." His stern voice sounded in her ear. "We need to move forward with the procedure! Bring him here now!"

"Kid, if you come with me, I can give you the answers you're looking for." She replied with a smile.

Mad Dawg suddenly took off running at full speed down the hallway laughing loudly and yelling "SUCKERRRRRRRR!"

Sombra frowned, annoyed. The kid was smarter then she gave him credit for, or he was absolutely nuts. Judging by their introduction. She guessed it was the latter.

"Well… He's coming your way. Akande." She said into her comm.

Meanwhile, Doomfist, Reaper and several Talon doctors were in a operating room waiting for Sombra and the teen they had found to arrive."

"What?" Doomfist asked confused.

As if on cue, Mad Dawg came sliding in before looking around. Suddenly realizing that this was most definitely a trap he took off running out the door and down another hallway. Doomfist didn't even have to say anything as Reaper was already in pursuit. He grabbed his hellfire shotguns and fired a few shells off. MD in response shot an arrow backwards at Reaper. But Mad Dawg was a terrible shot, so the arrow went flying over Reaper's head and-

"You know, this ISN'T the time to make me an inadequate shot!" Mad Dawg growled at the narrator.

Well, after my last anniversary, I've lost a lot of faith in you. I mean, my wife lost her legs in a shark attack, and you sent her SHARK PATTERN SOCKS!

"Seriously?! Is that was this is all about?" Dawg replied, staring to tire from all the running. "I said it once and I'll say it again! I put the wrong gift in the wrong envelope! Those weren't meant for your wife!" Felling fatigue begin to take over, he dove into a room and locked the door, luckily for him. Reaper ran by, still looking for him. Now that he was able to sit for a moment, Mad Dawg grabbed his phone and a can of Voltage Mountain Dew from his bag. Guzzling the drink he looked down and saw where the bullets had grazed him. Quickly opening his phone, he began searching through his contacts for someone who could help.

"Ash, no. Darryl, no. Jason, no, Lucio, no. Marcus, no… Wait! Lucio?!" He exclaimed confused. Scrolling up a few contacts, Mad Dawg was shocked to see that he had Lucio's mobile number in his phone. Why he did made no sense, but he had heard rumors that Lucio was part of the newly reformed Overwatch. Hitting 'call' he waited, his breath becoming more and more rapid out of fear of being found.

"Hey yo! You've reached Lucio! What's up?" Lucio's voice came form the other side.

"Lucio?" Mad Dawg asked, genuinely relieved.

"Uhh… Who is this?"

"My name's… Mad Dawg."

"Oh snap! What's going on Dawg!? It's great to hear from ya again!" Lucio suddenly seemed really happy to hear from him.

"Listen Lucio." Mad Dawg suddenly cut him off. "I don't know how or why I have your number but right now, I need help. Your with Overwatch right?"

"Yeah…."

"I just woke up in some crazy building in Dorado being run by a weird skull faced guy and some goons who call themselves 'Talon'. They want to give me implants of some kind. I need help NOW!"

Suddenly, the doors opened and a purple skinned woman was standing in the doorway with a sniper rifle.

"Don't move and it won't hurt." She growled.

Mad Dawg threw the empty bottle at her, which hit her on her helmet. Mad Dawg power slid in between her legs and kept running. She began firing her sniper rifle, which was now a machine gun, and successfully tagged Mad Dawg four times, causing him to cry out in pain. However, he managed to get into an elevator at the end of the hall way and pushed 'Up.' As he slumped down he saw he was losing a lot of blood. He weakly sat on the floor, also noticing that a daggar had somehow been shoved in his side. Suddenly, he remembered that when he fist started running from edgy Achmed, he must have been hit.

"For the love of god, just let me go." He groaned annoyed. Not sure he could take another encounter.

His heart sand when the elevator doors opened and a huge knight in fully body armor stood in front of him, with a colossal hammer.

"You want some? Come and get-" That was as far as Mad Dawg got, due to the blood loss and low blood sugar and general tiredness, he passed out.

 **A.N. That's all for chapter one folks! It seems like Mad Dawg's gone from one group of crazies straight into another! How will he react to Overwatch's team? Come back soon for the answer! And as always, feedback is always appreciated!**


	2. Shoot first, think never

**A.N. Well, I'm back. This time around, Mad Dawg is goanna meet some of the Overwatch team. Will he handle it as well as when he met Talon? Also, more of his powers will be discovered! Also, thanks to Rebel725 for being the first story follower!**

"Gah…bob's your aunt." Mad Dawg groaned as his eyes opened. The first thing he saw was a woman looking down at him. She had blonde hair and had a halo for some reason. "Wow… Heaven is for real." He said with a tied smile.

"Oh good! Your awake." The woman said with an accent. "On a scale of one to ten, how great is your pain?"

"Well, I've been shot, stabbed, burned, cut had my head smashed in and passed out form blood loss. So I'd say it's pretty friggin' high." Mad Dawg groaned in annoyance. He looked down and saw the knife was still in his side. He looked up and asked. "Why'd you leave it in?"

"At the moment, if we take it out, you'll bleed to death." The woman replied.

"I guess that's a _cut_ above the rest." Mad Dawg weakly joked. Suddenly, he grabbed the blade handle and yanked the blade out.

"NO DON'T!" The woman exclaimed.

He dropped the blade and true to her word, a large amount of blood began gushing out. To The woman's surprise, the blade wound closed itself and Mad Dawg began to lean up.

"See, I've got this… ability, it allows me to heal from most wounds. But if something it stuck inside me, like that knife. No heal-o." He paused for a moment before a confused look flashed onto his face. "Speaking of which, who the hell are you? And where the hell am I?"

"Yo kid. It's alright man." Came a new voice. "Your among friends."

"Hate to break it to you, but I don't have any frie-" Mad Dawg began grouchily before turning over and seeing Lucio leaning against a wall.

"Lucio? What are ya doing here?" Mad Dawg asked.

"I got your message." He replied holding up his phone. "I was nearby with some of my Overpals so we figured we'd lend a hand."

MD looked over and saw the giant knight guy from before, except now he wasn't wearing his helmet. To Mad Dawg's surprise, the man under the helmet was a very old man.

"The woman is Mercy, and the old dude is Reinhardt. And the guy sleeping over there is McCree."

Mad Dawg glanced over and saw a man who looked like a cowboy sleeping, snoring loudly.

"I'm Mad Dawg." Mad Dawg introduced himself.

"Greetings Dog!" Reinhardt sad loudly, waving. This made Mad Dawg laugh as he waved back.

"Your name is Mad… Dog?" Mercy asked, slightly sarcastically.

"It's Mad Dawg." MD corrected. "And yeah. It's my name. So what were you guys doing in Dorado?"

"Escort job." Lucio shrugged, to which Mad Dawg's face drastically as he looked at Mercy, Reinhardt, the sleeping McCree then back at Lucio. He leaned over to Lucio and whispered: "Is that why they're dressed like that?"

Lucio seemed confused by Mad Dawg's question before it dawned on him what he meant. "WHAT?!" He exclaimed before whispering the rest of the response. "Aw no man! Not like that! We were guarding an armored car."

"Oh. My bad." He groaned before rubbing his face. Mad Dawg decided now would be a good time to check himself. He glanced down at his arms, the few small scars he had and the chainsaw tattoo he got when he was 10 were still there. He didn't notice any other blades or bullets still in his body, and whatever Mercy had treated him with seemed to have done a real good job.

"Hey. Thanks for… thanks for not making me have a sword up my ass or something." He muttered. "I owe you a beer."

No problem. Besides, just using you as a punching bag for jokes would get old real fast. Now we should probably get back to the story

"Hey doc?" He called, still feeling tired. Mercy looked up from what she was reading and looked over at Mad Dawg. "Thanks for whatever you hit me with. My healing factor can close wounds, but you healed them, thanks." He turned over to Reinhardt. "Hey Iron Man? Thanks for the assist back there. I passed out in that elevator and I wanna thank you for getting me outta there."

"Always willing to help a fellow solider out!" Reinhardt boomed again, making Mad Dawg laugh again.

"Dunno what Billy the kid did, so I'll thank him later…" Mad Dawg muttered, looking at the (still) sleeping McCree. "And Lucio? Thanks for everything man. Talon said they wanted to install implants of some sort. I barely remember what happened at the party, but whatever it was must've been awesome. When we get wherever we're going, I'll tell you guys everything I could pick up. But again, thanks man." He and Lucio fist bumped.

"We'll be arriving at the base in about four hours." Mercy reported.

"In that case. Goodnight! Or morning. Who freakin' cares?" Mad Dawg said before falling asleep again.

When Mad Dawg woke again, he saw that the ship had landed and Reinhardt was leaving. Getting up, he slung his messenger bag across his shoulder and walked out of the ship. He was amazed at how large the base was, it seemed like it was new, yet also seemed… lived in. He looked for any indication as for where he was supposed to go. He saw lines going off in different directions but none of them seemed like the right way. So he suddenly found himself in another room, but this room was bright white and had no doors.

"Oh, so now I'm in an insane asylum?" Mad Dawg sighed. "Well, one group of crazies to another I guess…"

"You." Came a deep gravely voice.

MD turned around and saw Reaper standing in front of him. He then grabbed both his shotguns and aimed them at Mad Dawg. In response, Mad Dawg grabbed his barbed wire baseball bat from his bag and swung it at Reaper who changed into smoke and floated a few feet away. When he stopped he fired a few more shots which made Mad Dawg drop to the floor and roll. Reaper then swiftly came forward and attacked using his shotguns as blunt weapons, but MD was able to his reaper in the guy with his bat, and then smacked him in the side of the head. But when Reaper dropped his shotguns, he just pulled two more out from… somewhere. However, Mad Dawg grabbed one of Reapers shotguns and fired it back at him. But once again, Reaper easily avoided it.

 _Damn he's good._ Mad Dawg thought. _How do I beat this guy?_

 **Think first shoot later.** One part of his brain said.

Find his weakness and exploit is with your physical strength! Came another part.

 **Shoot first, think later.** A third part added. **Or better yet, shoot first, think never.**

 _Yeah… Shoot first think never!_ Mad Dawg realized. He threw Reaper's shotgun up into the air and watched as Reaper teleported around. He took a deep breath and caught it. It took only a few milliseconds but then Reaper appeared.

"Boom." Mad Dawg grinned. He pulled the trigger and Reaper's head exploded….

Into pixels.

What?

"Yeah. What?" Mad Dawg asked confused.

"Simulation ended." A computer voice said.

"Unbelievable!" Came a voice.

Mad Dawg turned around and was really surprised to see a large gorilla in a space suit and a young woman with a blue light in her chest. The woman suddenly appeared inches from his face. "How'd you do that?! Do you 'ave magic or something?! Could ya show me how you did tha'?!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Mad Dawg screamed loudly as he seemed to be having a mental freak out.

 **A.N. And that's all for now folks! So far, Mad Dawg's met Mercy, Reaper, Doomfist, Sombra, Widdowmaker, Lucio, Reinhardt, a sleeping McCree, and just ran into Tracer and Winston! Come back soon for another chapter in this Dawg's Tale!**


	3. Lunch Time

**A.N. I'm back baby! Sorry for taking awhile to finally get the next chapter up, I'll explain more at the end of the chapter. Also, Doomfist is finally out! He looks awesome… BUT NO ONE EVER LET'S ME CHOOSE HIM! Seriously. WTF guys?! Enough about my sad life. Onto the story.**

When Winston had received word that a young civilian was trapped in Talon HQ. He was rather shocked. He was even more shocked when he got word from Mercy that Reinhardt found him in the doorway of Talon's HQ, and that he had fought and ran his way to freedom. The when Mercy had shown him a recording of the civilian ripping a knife out from his side and the wound healing suddenly, he was even more shocked. Then after seeing this "civilian", (as he didn't believe 'Mad Dawg' was his real name) take on a simulation of Reaper –with no prior knowledge of Reaper's abilities or any type of combat training- he didn't think he could be anymore shocked.

So imagine how shocked he was when the civilian had pulled a crossbow out and was now aiming it directly at him, while having a mental break down.

"WHERE AM I?!" He screamed.

"Your in Giblit-" He began.

"WHY WAS EDGY ACHMED HERE!?" He was cut off by the teenagers screaming. Normally, Tracer or someone would try and calm him, but his sudden mood shift had genuinely frightened Tracer to a point where she was hiding behind Winston.

"It was a training simula-"

"WHY AM I HERE?!"

"You appeared in this room suddenly, another member was going to train in here when you suddenl-"

"YOU'RE A TALKING MONKEY. HOW THE HELL IS THAT A THING?!" The teen's frazzled nerves seemed to have calmed slightly, and now his insanity seemed to be steadily replaced with fear. He then shifted his gaze and screamed in fear before firing off several bolts upwards. Hanzo was able to pull Ana aside and neither was hit.

"Please! If you'll calm down, I assure you everything can be explained rationally!" Winston said, trying to reason with the teen.

"GIANT. TALKING. MONKEY."

It was pretty clear that neither side was about to stand down until Lucio skated in between Winston and Mad Dawg.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" He exclaimed. "Calm down man! Don't do something you'll regret!"

"It's a bit late for that." Mad dawg muttered, louder than he thought. His crossbow now aimed at Winston again.

"Listen Dawg. This is the Overwatch HQ!" Lucio explained. "That angel doctor and the old German guy? They're part of Overwatch. I went to find you when you woke up but you literally vanished and just re-appeared here!"

Mad Dawg was still breathing heavily, his heart was racing at an unsafe speed, the fear and the adrenaline were going to cause a cardiac arrest if something wasn't done.

"Listen MD." Lucio continued, seeming to have gotten through to Mad Dawg. "We aren't going to hurt you. Something's really got you spooked, and we want to help you. But if you keep freaking out, you're only going to hurt yourself."

Mad Dawg seemed to be thinking it over, and then slowly lowered his crossbow.

"Your not with Talon?" He asked Winston.

"Of course not!" Winton exclaimed.

"You guys are Overwatch?"

"Indeed."

Mad Dawg tossed the crossbow aside, making it clear he had no other weapons present.

"I'm sorry about my freak out." Mad Dawg began slowly. "And I'd like to apologize to the two up above us I fired it. It was uncalled for."

"I don't think anyone would blame you for what happened." Winston stated matter-of-factly. "You were held prisoner in a terrorist headquarters and nearly forced into who knows what kind of experiment. You fought your way out at great physical cost and you just had an encounter with a simulation of one of the members of the group who captured you. You were acting on self-preservation. And if we had known you were in here, we never would've started the simulation."

"I have some severe reservations!" A Japanese voiced called from above.

"Ignoring him." Winston cleared his throat. "I don't believe we were properly introduced. My name is Winston. Your name is Mad Dog?"

"Dawg. But yeah." Mad Dawg nodded.

"But how'd you do all that?!" The woman exclaimed suddenly appearing in front of Mad Dawg. Who in response screamed loudly and swung at her screaming. "GHOST!"

"Lena!" Winston demanded. "Stop doing that!"

"Waitwaitwait." Mad Dawg said trying to get everyone's attention. "You can do that… on purpose? It's not some sort of paradox-creating, world-destroying, easy button?"

"N…no…" Tracer replied confused.

"Cool. That's actually really cool now that I see it." Mad Dawg shrugged. "Listen. Could I get some food somewhere?"

"Umm. There's a food court down the hall and we'd be happy to take you there but first I have some questions for yo-" Winston began but then saw that Mad Dawg was gone.

 _IN THE FOOD COURT…_

"No." Mad Dawg growled.

What?

"We need to talk. NOW." Mad Dawg growled again. In the middle of a hallway.

What's up?

"You wanna explain to me why you're doing this crap? Throwing me around like a freakin' hacky sack?"

I have no idea what you're talking about.

"I wake up, get stabbed and shot. Dragged into another base. Then you just abandon me?!"

Listen man. There's only so much I can do. When I assist you in the story, I have to back off for awhile. Also, there are going to be specific points I can't do anything about. I'm sorry.

"Who ya talkin' to mate?" Came a voice.

Once again, Mad Dawg screamed and swung his bat. He saw an older man with smoking hair, a slightly burned face and a cybernetic arm and peg leg.

"Whoa mate! Didn't mean ta scare ya!" The main exclaimed, backing away.

"Agh." He sighed. "My bad. I… I get scared easily."

"You the new guy there's been talk of?" The man asked.

"You mean I've been here all of ten minutes and there's already rumors of me?" Mad Dawg sighed but was smiling. The man returned the smile with an insane grin.

"Yeah. They say your some kinda mutant psychopath. Not that there's anythin' wrong wit that. I happen to be one of those two things myself. Th'names Junkrat." Junkrat introduced himself.

"I'm Mad Dawg." Mad Dawg replied. "And I'm looking for the cafeteria. Or bathroom. Unless there's chili. Then cafeteria then bathroom."

"Bathroom's down the hall, cafeteria is right there and chili was yesterday."

"Okay. And I guess it's okay chili was yesterday. I'm pretty sure gas warfare is illegal now anyways."

This caused Junkrat to burst into uncontrollable laughter, which in turn, made Mad Dawg laugh at the horrible joke as well. Mad Dawg and Junkrat both headed to the cafeteria. Mad Dag walked over to the food table, and there was a lot of pizza lying there. Grabbing four slices of cheese pizza Mad Dawg walked over to where Junkrat was, and then there was a behemoth of a man with a large gas mask who was somehow eating eight pizzas. Also at the table was a short man with red armor with a claw for a hand, a very muscular woman with pink hair, and a cybernetic ninja. None of the group noticed him standing near them, and Mad Dawg knew he had to make a good first impression. Then the huge man turned and noticed him. He made a grunt and the others grew silent when they all saw that there was a new guy. No one spoke for a full minute.

"Uhh…" Mad Dawg began.

You blew it.

 _I totally blew it._

Mad Dawg said nothing but turned and walked over to the table that was farthest away from the group. He then sat down and silently the pizza he had while staring at a wall. The others looked at each other before the cybernetic ninja stood up with his tray and walked over and sat at the same table as Mad Dawg. The two exchanged a glance, but it was clear Mad Dawg now felt extremely uncomfortable.

"Greetings." Was all the cybernetic ninja said. Mad Dawg just kept looking at the wall.

Soon the others who were watching the event made there way over as well. Now they were all staring at a wall. No one tried to make first contact as they hoped the newcomer would be the first to speak, but they were beginning to think he wouldn't.

"Good wall." The man with the gas mask commented.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Really makes you think." The small man commented.

"Yup."

Meanwhile, Winston and Tracer were looking for Mad Dawg when they saw Junkrat heading to the workshop.

"Junkie!" Tracer called. Junkrat turned and saw the two. "Aye?"

"You wouldn't have happened to see a young lad runnin' through here would ya?" Tracer asked.

"As a matter o'fact I did." Junkrat replied feeling proud of himself… Although he didn't know why. "He was lookin' for the slop hall. I think he's still there."

Junkrat turned and walked into the workshop while Tracer and Winston checked the cafeteria and saw that Mad Dawg, Genji, Torbjorn, Zarya and Road Hog were staring at a wall.

"Are they… Possessed or something?" Lena asked confused.

Torbjorn noticed Tracer and Winston and quietly snuck over to them.

"So uh. What's going on?" Tracer asked the swedish man.

"That new guy just showed up. He tried to talk but he seemed to have a brain fart and just started staring at the wall. We all kinda felt bad for him so we're trying to get him to talk to us."

Mad Dawg finished off another slice of pizza before looking around. He sighed and laughed defeatedly.

"Well, this has been an awkward first day…" He muttered. "Might as well start. My Name's Mad Dawg, I'm the new guy… I guess."

"Wasn't hard to tell." Road Hog commented.

"Also, we assumed you were Mad Dawg." Genji added. "We saw the simulation footage."

"You fought well for an untrained solider." Zarya commented.

"So are you going to be part of the team?" Genji asked.

"Wh…what?" Mad Dawg stuttered, surprised by the question.

"Are you going to join us? Join Overwatch?" Zarya asked, trying to simplify the question.

"N..no one ever asked…" Mad Dawg admitted sheepishly. "I'm only here because I broke out of a Talon base and passed out in an elevator."

The three at the table went dead silent in shock at the last part of what Mad Dawg said.

"You… Escaped from Talon's base?" Genji asked. Surprise evident in his voice.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. "I was at Lucio's party, I passed out and woke up in their base, they tried to give me implants or something, I escaped, fought my way out and passed out in the elevator and was found by Reinhardt." Mad Dawg recapped the first chapter in case someone was jumping into the story at chapter three. Although why they would made no sense. Unless their friend or someone was reading the story and they left their laptop open and you were glancing at it and decided to start reading…

 _And now, back to the story._ Mad Dawg internally grumbled to get the narrator's attention.

Needless to say, the other three were impressed. And no one noticed Winston walk up to the group until he cleared his throat.

"Oh. It's the giant talking monkey." Mad Dawg stated awkwardly. "How much of that did you hear?"

"All of it." Winston replied. "And as a matter of fact, I was hoping I could talk to you about what you'll do now." Winston stated. "We were wondering if you'd like to join Overwatch."

 **A.N. THE END! For now. Yeah, I know. Not as action packed as the first two chapters, and the next chapter may not be super-action packed. But I need to set some stuff up before we get running. My idea for this story is a bunch of story arcs spanning across multiple chapters. The first two are planned, one being about a series of missions and the second one is titled "Bad Blood". I think you'll really enjoy them! Until next time, peace.**


	4. On The Road Again

Mad Dawg sat in a room with Winston and Tracer, as well as an older man with a visor and an old woman who only had one eye. They all seemed to be waiting on him.

"You want me to join Overwatch?" Mad Dawg asked. Genuinely surprised.

"Yes." Winston nodded.

"…why?" Mad Dawg asked his next question with real confusion. "I'm not legally an adult, I haven't done much since we met, and I don't know how shooting a hologram counts as an initiation test."

"Kid, we want you to come on a few missions with us." The old man spoke up. "We want to see you in the field. See how you work with a team."

"You escaped a building full of the deadliest men and women known today." The old woman stated. "You had not training but planned a full escape and survived a confrontation with the leader of an international band of terrorists."

"I can tell you right now. I'm not the kinda guy you want on this team." Mad Dawg shook his head.

"Why?" The old woman asked.

Mad Dawg however seemed to have a thousand-yard stare. He was looking at the wall and his eyes almost seemed to turn a murky white. The other's in the room seemed to be talking but everything was tuned out as a loud ringing was all MD heard for a few moments.

 ** _"NO ESCAPE"_**

"KID!" The old man shouted.

Suddenly coming back to reality Mad Dawg exclaimed and fell backwards. He sighed and stood up.

"Normally, I wouldn't tell anyone this, but I'm not good in a fight. I don't have control. You throw me into a battlefield, I don't follow orders. The only thing I care about is survival."

The four looked at him with mixed reactions. Winston was slightly unnerved, the old man seemed to understand MD's 'Survival-is-key' mindset in a battle, The old woman saw something else inside him, and Tracer was amazed at the hidden side of Mad Dawg. She –like most of the group- didn't know much about the newcomer. And this was something surprising.

"If that's how you feel, you can go. We understand." The woman said.

"Ana's right." Winston nodded. "if you aren't comfortable with war, maybe this isn't the right place for you."

"That…that's not it." Mad Dawg sighed. "I had a group of guys come after me once, I had to kill like ninety percent of them. The fighting, the killing, I'm okay with that. But if it comes down to me or someone else, I can't promise anything. I know that Overwatch is built on the trust you all have for each other. But every time I trust someone… They die."

The room was dead silent, mostly in shock until Jack sighed himself.

"Kid, I know exactly how you feel." He began. "I was with Overwatch during the Omnic Crisis, and I was a vigilante for years after it was disbanded. I saw a lot of people I cared for die. People I considered family. The hardest thing I learned from war is that you can't blame yourself for the people you couldn't save."

Mad Dawg looked at him, his eyes wide with a lot of emotions. Surprise, wonder, determination, confusion, and uncertainty. He looked to the ground before looking back at the group. His grin now on his face again.

The next day…

"Is he?" Torbjorn asked.

"Yes. He is." Tracer nodded.

"He's sleeping. On the payload."

It had been very quiet today. Torbjorn, Tracer, Mercy, McCree, Mad Dawg and Roadhog were sent to escort a truck with a generator to a power plant in Russia. Zarya would've come, but she was busy with… Something. Mad Dawg seemed almost like a small child when they had initially touched down. He hadn't been to Russia and he seemed amazed by the sights. For about five minutes. Once the payload was moving he lay down a fell asleep. What surprised everyone more was after the payload was that there was no one attempting to attack the payload. There were a few people who looked at the group, but went along with their days. However a few Talon agents were watching from the shadows.

"Well, Gabe. Did you think this would happen?" Sombra asked.

Reaper growled and crushed a small communicator.

"You should have let me kill him." Widdowmaker commented.

"You let him escape." Reaper replied coldly.

"The both of you are to blame for his escape." Doomfist's voice came over the comm. "You let him escape, and now everything we've been working towards is at risk. Do not make the same mistake again."

There were about twenty agents who surrounded the payload. Weapons drawn and aimed at the payload.

"Uh. Kid?" McCree nudged Mad Dawg nervously. "We need you awake. Now."

A few Talon operative fired, making the agents dive for cover. A few ground agents began advancing to the payload. Then they stopped when they saw Mad Dawg sleeping. Two approached.

"Is this kid for real?" One asked.

"I think he's the one who escaped from the boss." The other commented.

"If we bring him in, how much've a raise will we get?"

 ** _Shulk_** _._

The two felt air rush through their throats as warm blood began pouring out of the gashes that were now prominent on their necks. The two fell to the ground and began choking for air as Mad Dawg stood, two large knives –one in each hand- over the dying men.

"Hopefully enough to pay for your funerals." He quipped.

The other Talon operatives began to open fire but Mad Dawg jumped behind some crates before shouting: "HEY! ANYONE WANNA HELP?!" When he didn't hear a response he sighed and opened his bag and grabbed a chainsaw and revved it as quickly as he could. He charged out head ducked down and went straight into a gunman, the blade dug straight into him and protruded out his back. Leaving the chainsaw in the man, he turned around and –using the first man's gun- fired multiple shots into the man behind him before ripping the chainsaw out of the first man and then sliced deeply into a third man. He then spun and threw his chainsaw like a Frisbee, it flew down the line and sliced two agents' heads clean off. He stopped and breathed aggressively. Then, he felt an extreme pain as several bullets bore into Mad Dawg, he yelled loudly then turned and saw Widdowmaker on a rooftop. Mad Dawg snarled and flipped her off before diving for cover.

"SNIPER!" He screamed loudly. "HOLD ONTO YOUR BUTTS!"

Nice reference.

"Where the hell were you!?"

I needed to get a snack.

By now, Roadhog came in going 'Whole Hog' as he rapidly fired off his scrap gun. Tracer was blinking in and out firing off short bursts. By now, most of the Talon goons were either unconscious, or dead. Well, MD was pretty sure they were dead. Was it possible for someone to survive being run through with a chainsaw?* Anyhow. Mad Dawg grabbed a pistol from an operative and yelled. "MCCREE! CATCH!"

McCree caught the pistol and grabbed his peacekeeper before his eyes narrowed and he said in a low tone.

"It's high noon…"

Roadhog grabbed Mercy and pulled her away from the hail of bullets that followed. McCree tossed the pistol away and shot Mad Dawg a thumbs up. Meanwhile, Tracer was helping a child get back to her mother while guiding them away from the battle, while Torbjorn had his turret built on top of the payload and it was firing at a mile a minute.

"Do I need to do everything myself?" Reaper growled preparing to enter the fray.

"No." Doomfist ordered.

"What?"

"Get Widdowmaker and get out." Doomfist ordered. "I've seen what I need to."

Reaper growled in anger before enter wraith form and leaving.

"Fall back." Widdowmaker heard through her comm. She looked over at Sombra who simply shrugged, confused. Before setting down the Widdow's Kiss she saw that the medic was alone. She aimed her crosshairs directly at Mercy's head and prepared to fire…

 ** _WHAM!_**

"GOONGALA GOONGALA!" A voice shouted as she felt a baseball bat striking the back of her head. Mad Dawg swung aggressively again but Widdowmaker threw herself off the building before shooting her grappling hook and taking off. Mad Dawg grunted as he saw her escape, and then saw the bullets still in his gut. His healing factor was trying to work but the bullets were tough and didn't want to budge, he'd have to get Mercy to get them out. Maybe he should start wearing armor… Or clean underpants…

"Oh screw you!" He growled aas he jumped back down onto the payload as it continued it's journey. Tracer blinked back to the payload.

"You alright love?" She asked.

Mad Dawg grinned, blood stains on his shirt and a missing tooth clear when he smiled. He had taken a beating, but his personality hadn't.

"Yeah." He answered. "I'm gonna be okay."

"That was impressive." Torbjorn commented as he walked up alongside the payload. "You haven't had any training of any sort? Like at all?"

"Nah. None." MD sighed lying back on the payload. "I don't know how I know what to do when I end up in situations like this, I just… know."

"Weird." Torbjorn shrugged.

"Hey. I got a bag of Oreos." Mad Dawg said, opening his messenger bag. "Anyone want a snack?"

 **Boom. Done. Thanks to the small group who seem to be really enjoying the story so far! As always, review and follow! Then next chapter will have Mad Dawg heading to Japan with some of the other members he hasn't met yet. As well as some more Talon's planning.**

 *** No.**


	5. You Stole My Heart, Now You Die

It was odd.

The silence that is.

Hanzo Shimada watched the new recruit, 'Mad Dawg' he had heard, stare wide-eyed at the courtyard from the balcony they were positioned on. All the way up, Mad Dawg had been trying to spark conversation, or was having a one-sided conversation with someone who didn't exist. Hanzo had written it off that he was either as energetic as Tracer, or as insane as Junkrat. He was assuming both. But as the two stood and watched the moonlight reflect off the cherry blossoms below, Mad Dawg had gone complete silent, he just watched for 8 minuets now, it seemed like this was the first time he had ever seen anything like this.

"It's so beautiful." He finally said quietly.

"When I was a young, I would come up here to meditate." Hanzo commented. "It was a place of calm and serenity. I felt like the whole world balanced when I came up here. Life's problems could easily be solved, the uncertainties of my own abilities seemed to be replaced by a still calm."

"I've never seen anything like this before."

"Where are you from?" Hanzo asked, confused at how MD could have never seen a moon rise.

"I don't know." Mad Dawg replied, sadness in his voice. "I don't know anything. I remember living in a cardboard box, then a junkyard."

Hanzo was taken aback by this. He had some (very, very, very, very) very strained relations with a few members of his family, but it seemed like Mad Dawg never knew his.

"You don't know your own family?" He asked. He had a feeling that either Mad Dawg would yell at him, or throw him off the balcony. But he felt like asking anyways.

"No." Was the only reply he got.

He picket up the sniper rifle he was given and became stoic. He watched as several members of Overwatch ran into a building.

"Team Mega Ass-Kickers? This is The Awesome Possum duo checking in." He said into his comm.

Down Below…

"Anyone know why we let him name the teams?" Solider 76 sighed.

"It seemed to make him feel accepted, and if he is going to join with our organization, we wanted to let him contribute." Genji replied.

"Also, Team Mega Kick-Ass sounds… kick ass." added. "I still need to meet the new challenger though." She had arrived in her MEKA and still hadn't met Mad Dawg, but was excited when she heard he was about the same age. Possibly.

"A.P.D? This is T. ." Solider replied. "We're clear." The group continued into the room.

"Hey." Mad Dawg said turning to Hazno. "Good job naming the teams."

Hanzo just smirked in response. Mad Dawg jumped over the edge of the tower and seemed to bounce off of a few buildings then landed on the ground and ran off after the team. Hanzo shook his head, still not understanding how Mad Dawg seemed to be so insane.

Genji looked solemnly at the swords his brother once fought with, now hanging up on on the wall. Ever since the incident when they were younger, his brother had refused to use them evermore due to the memories which would be connected to them.

"Hey… Genji?"

Genji looked over his shoulder and looked at Mad Dawg.

"You okay?"

Genji just nodded and kept walking.

"Hey. ST." Dawg said looking up. "You laying on the emotions a bit thick?"

Do you know Genji's story?

"No."

Ask Mercy sometime. The whole fandom is constantly shipping them, once you hear his story, the whole sword thing will make more sense.

"Huh…"

Actually, screw that. Go watch the animated short _Dragons_.

"MD! Get in here!" Solider 76 called from the other room.

Now watching the animated short, Mad Dawg walked away staring at his tablet. All while someone watched from above... Entering the room, Mad Dawg heard something moving. Then suddenly…

Shunk.

A trio of throwing knives flew right by Genji and went deep into the wall.

"GET DOWN!" Solider 76 ordered.

Without warning, a battalion of Shimada assassin's dropped from the ceiling, weapons drawn and ready to attack.

"Hōrudo!" A voice called.

The assassin's paused as a very old man walked into the room. With each solider he poses they would put their sword or weapon up in a salute. The man seemed to look at the members of Overwatch.

"DON KIM!" Mad Dawg suddenly exclaimed. "HOLY CRAP MAN IT IS GOOD TO SEE YA!"

The old man's eyes widened when he saw Mad Dawg.

"Watashi no furui tomodachi Mad Dawg! Sore wa nagai koto sa rete iru!" Don Kim exclaimed happily as the two fist bumped. While the Shimada assassin's (and all the Overwatch members) stared in disbelief.

"You… You know him?!" Genji asked, shocked.

"Hell yeah I do!" Mad Dawg laughed. "This crazy ol'geazer has my heart in him!"

No one knew how to respond to that. Was he being literal? Or metaphorical? Either way it was weird. (But I'm not judging, it's 2017. Ha ha. I'm tots judging.)

"It's true." Don Kim nodded.

"OMG." D. Va whispered.

"Kid… What's this guy talking about?" McCree asked somewhat awkwardly.

"Come my friends." Don Kim said, motioning for the agents to follow him. "Allow us us to explain."

"Flashback." Mad Dawg said, pointing at nothing.

 _Some time in the past…_

"Gah… Wha… Whathtehell?" Mad Dawg mumbled. Everything was blurry. He could hear two voices speaking in a language he didn't understand. As things began to come clearer, he saw a large gaping hole in his chest, bloody and ragged, a vice seemed to be used to open his chest and keep it there. He also saw that his heart was gone.

"HOLY CRAP!" Mad Dawg yelled.

The two doctors began freaking out when they saw he was conscious.

"Ittai nanina no? Watashi wa anata ga kare ga ikutsu ka no hāsu no tame ni soto ni derudarou to ittaga!" One of them yelled.

"Watashi o minaide kudasai! Watashi wa ishade wanai! Watashi wa dauntaun no seijin eigakan de kanrinin to shite hataraite imasu! Karera wa watashi o tsukande, kono shigoto no tame ni 200 man o watashi ni mōshideta!" The other yelled in a panic.

Mad Dawg rolled over and dragged himself up. Ripping the vice out his chest quickly closed, but he was blurry as hell. He could barely focus on anything in front of him, so he grabbed something with green liquid and jabbed it into his neck.

"Ā fakku" The first doctor whispered.

 _What was that?"_ Mad Dawg thought.

Pure Adrenalin.

 _Ohhhhhhhh boy._ Mad Dawg said. A mixture of fear and twisted power.

(A.N. If you wanna be a bit more immersed in this part, switch over to YouTube and type in 'Jesus Built my Hotrod' find the one with the Watch_dogs Season Pass image as the thumbnail and hit play.)

Everything turned red. Mad Dawg grabbed two (almost comically) large medical surgery knives.

"HERE WE GO!" Mad Dawg roared.

Running forward at top speed, Mad Dawg used one of the two doctors as a meat shield as he slashed the second doctor's throat. Running out the door the guards began to fire off their automatic assault rifles at him, but he used the doctor as a bloody meat shield. He threw the corpse onto one of the guards and slashed the second across the chest. With a punch more powerful then he thought was possible, his fist went clean though the generic goon #28's chest and out his back, holding a chunk of his spine in his hand. Ripping his hand free, Mad Dawg continued at an unnatural pace. Smashing though a glass wall, he tumbled and fell into a roll, using the roll almost as a blunt force attack, he smashed into a group of guards who had just been told of his escape, but had no idea what to do. Grabbing generic goon #34's handgun, Mad Dawg continued his inhuman sprint in a random direction, skidding around a corner he found himself…

In a kitchen.

"Kare o nige sasenaide!" He heard a voice yell.

Frantically looking for a weapon, MD grabbed the coffee pot, when the first generic goon ran in, he the the pot at him, splashing the scalding coffee all over his face and burning him, causing him to scream in pain. Mad Dawg looked around for anything else to use.

Steak Knife, Machine Gun, Katana, Grenade, Stale Sandwich

Grabbing for the steak knife, he drove it into the second goon's chest. Propelled by the natural human will to live, and way to much adrenaline to be able to clearly think, Mad Dawg stabbed the goon...

With the sandwich.

"AAAAAGGGHHHH!" The goon screamed as the sole sandwich was now sticking out of his eye socket.

 _Dude!_

I know right? Is that even possible? Someone get the Mythbusters up on that one.

Briefly distracted, one of the attackers managed to stab Mad Dawg with a kusarigama (for you non-Japanese knowers, thats a chain-sickle) and yanked him forward, tearing large Chung of Mad Dawg's shoulder out, muscle and tendons being ripped out. Mad Dawg howled at the pain, because even though he has a healing factor, he still feels pain.

 _No SHIT SHERLOCK!_

Language.

 _Suck a cock!_

Suddenly wrapping the chain around his leg, MD pulled back, pulling generic goon #12 towards him, tripping him up and knocking him to the ground. Mad dawg grimaced as he ripped the sickle from his shoulder, then stabbed goon #12 in the back. Grabbing him he threw him out a nearby window, and he fell onto several levels of construction pathways before hissing the ground face first. However, he wasn't dead. Looking up, the goon saw the blood-soaked body of his assailant, standing over him, and not in a good mood.

"Alright." Mad Dawg snarled. "Tell me what happened to me or this gets real bloody real fast."

"I am not afraid of…you…" The goon rasped defiantly.

Mad Dawg rolled his eyes and pushed him against a wall, the sickle going deeper into his back, beginning to every so slightly poke at his lung. The goon let out a cracked and weak scream, as that was all that was left inside him.

"Tell me now and you live. Don't tell me and I'll kill every last one of you till I get some goddamn answers."

"DON KIM! DON KIM!" The goon shouted.

"Jesus! Your a suicide bomber?!" Mad Dawg yelled surprised .

( **A.N. I'm sorry for that joke. It was too easy. Also, sorry if your offended by it.)**

"No! Our leader! Don Kim! He has your heart!" The goon exclaimed terrified. "Hehehehehe needed a new one! You were a match… sowewewe…"

"YOU TORE MY HEART OUT AND GAVE IT TO A CRIME BOSS!?" Mad Dawg roared.

"NO!" The goon screamed in fear. "He's 278 years old! We believe that if he was given your heart, he'd live for another hundred years! Real or not, we needed him alive until we got the combination to the Shimada safe! They we were gonna kill him!"

"Where is he?"

 _Meanwhile…_

Chilling in the back of his limo with five women he just picked up, and a endless supply of Long Island Ice Teas, Don Kim was having the time of his life. The new heart was more than he could've hoped for and now he had spent the past eight hours non-stop partying. He had his driver pick up Lucio's new album and currently was having a jam session with the girls in the back.

"Anyone want another one?" He asked smugly, holding up a bottle of vodka.

"Yeah. I'll take one." A new voice came. Suddenly, the driver stopped and turned around holding a gun. "And my heart."

"Whoa! Hold on there buddy!" Don Kim exclaimed, holding his hands up while the girls freaked out. "What's all this about?"

"THIS!" Mad Dawg yelled, tearing open his heart to show the vice which he had re-opened, a small batter with four wires now in the place where his heart should have been. "IS WHAT IT'S ABOUT!"

"Hold up." Don Kim said, suddenly realizing what was happening. "Your the guy they took the heart form? Why the hell didn't they give you the replacement?"

"…what?" Mad Dawg asked, lovering the gun slightly.

"I told those idiots!" Don Kim exclaimed to himself, before looking back at Mad Dawg. "We had a replacement heart for you. It didn't work with my body, which is why we needed yours. We were also going to pay you a substantial amount for your trouble! Why the hell didn't they do their job?"

"Uhhhhhhh…" Mad Dawg said, suddenly realizing what he had done.

"Wait. How old are you?"

"Sixteen."

"I'm gonna kill those idiots…" Don Kim grumbled. "I told them, never to use children!"

"Well… I think I might'a done a favour for you then…" Mad Dawg said awkwardly.

Instead of being angry, Don Kim laughed.

"Also, they were gonna betray you and kill you." Mad dawg added.

Now Don Kim stopped laughing.

"What?" He asked gravely.

"Listen, I think there's been a huge misunderstanding here." Mad Dawg said. "How's about we go back to the base, you can get your guys to give me the replacement, then we talk about the rest of this stuff?"

"Sounds fine to me." Don Kim nodded.

 _Present Day…_

"What happened after?" Tracer asked.

"They hooked me up with a replacement heart, we stopped an attempted takeover of the Shimada clan, and we went and got drunk as hell and partied with strippers!" Mad dawg finished, as he and Don Kim fist bumped as a sign of friendship.

"…you never mentioned knowing this man." Hanzo stated. "Why was that?"

"After…after your father forced the decision that Genji must die and you had to be the one who killed him… I lost faith in your father's abilities to lead the clan. After you left, because of choices I made…my health took a turn for the worse. That is when I was forced to undergo this process. I would not leave this families legacy to my son. Not after what he had done." Don Kim explained, sadness and regret in his voice.

"Kenryoku o sagashimotomeru hito wa, jibun ga motte iru chikara o, sore ga nakunaru made jitsugen suru koto wa arimasen." Mad Dawg stated, quite calmly.

"It is growing late. If you would like, you may stay here for the night." Don Kim offered to the agents. "My men will show you to your rooms if you would like."

Mad Dawg looked over to Solider 76. Who looked back with a confused glance.

"Your the leader." Mad Dawg finally said.

"We'll stay." Solider 76 answred.

As the agents began to depart for their spoerate rooms, Solider 76 stopped Mad Dawg, turning around he saw tracer with a huge smile on her face. He was confused, he was pretty sure this was the part where they'd kill him.

"Welcome to Overwatch love." Tracer said with a smile.

 **A.N. That's all folks! Sorry for the lack of updates. Starting in University and all… Still, thanks for the reviews and follows! I'm not stopping anytime soon!**


	6. Do You Like Waffles?

**Word up. I'm here with Chapter Six! Review, Fave, and ENJOY!**

The next day, Mad Dawg was sitting in the middle of the room, trying to meditate. But got bored within thirty seconds and was now playing Doom on his gameboy.

"Doo do do do do do do do doo doo…" He quietly sang to himself.

Hearing a knock on the door, he lazily dragged himself over to the door. When he opened it, he was face-to-face with Hana Song. World-renown gamer, MEKA pilot and potentially the only person who was more addicted to Mountain Dew than he was.

"Hiya." She said in a friendly way. "I'm Hana…"

"Song." Mad Dawg cut her off. "Y..your D. Va."

"You know me?" She asked curiously.

"I know your gaming style." Mad Dawg replied. "Tactical advantages, never letting your groups be to far away so that they couldn't return to assist if needed."

Do I sense Mad Dawg X D. Va? Maybe… MadVa?

 _I swear I will drag you into the story just so I can kill you._ Mad Dawg growled.

"So...your the rookie?" She asked.

Mad Dawg smirked. Realizing that yeah, he was the newbie on the team.

"Yeah. I guess I am." He said. "You uh... you wanna hang out?

"Sure!"

About 15 minutes passes and Mad Dawg found himself struggling to keep up with Hana, he wasn't surprised however. She WAS a world-renowned gamer.

"So… You have any idea what's next for us? After we're done here, what's next?" Mad Dawg asked. "Hell, I don't even know what kind of missions we're SUPPOSED to do. You saw how this one turned out."

"Well…We're probably going to do some training so we cane help you gain some XP." She replied, eyes still focused on the game.

"Do you think we could stop by my place so I could grab some stuff?"

"Probs."

"Cool."

The two went back to their game for a bit, but Mad Dawg wanted to find a little more about his teammates. Luckily for him, Hana was practically about to burst with questions she was dying to ask, but also didn't want to freak him out.

"This may sound weird… But how old are you?" She finally asked.

"I'm seventeen." Mad Dawg replied, slightly weirded out by the question.

"Really?! OMG! I'm older than you!" D. Va practically squealed.

"Really? Geez…I feel like a little kid…" He mumbled embarrassed somewhat. "Hey just outta curiosity, what's up with you and 76?"

D. Va seemed confused about this but suddenly made sense what Mad Dawg was asking.

"He's the boss around here." She began. Cheery as ever. "But ever since I showed up, he's kinda been like a father figure to me and some of the others. Tracer has even called him 'Father 76'." She laughed at that and Mad Dawg tried not to, but was losing that battle.

"So… If I wanna hurt him… I kill you?" He suddenly asked.

"Wh…what?" Hana suddenly sweat dropped.

"Y'know. If Solider Boy crosses me and I wanna hurt him, your the one I hit?" He said with grim malice, his face twisted into a grin akin to one that Junkrat would have, but mixed with the insanity of a killer. Hana was genuinely frightened by this. Then, she heard the 'Victory!' Sound effect.

"Boom! I win!" Mad Dawg cheered. "Also, you totally fell for it!"

"Hey!" D. Va exclaimed annoyed, realizing that both Mad Dawg was cheating and that her record was just broken.

Later that day, the members of Overwatch said goodbye to Don Kim and they left, Mad Dawg was sitting next to Solider 76 and was across from Genji. His mind was all over the place, on the one hand, he was heading home to grab some stuff, but on the other hand, he was going home. He wasn't sure if he was ready or wanted to let the team see his home. Reaching into his bag, he picked up his old tape player and put his headphones on. But for some reason, he didn't feel like listening to music.

"You okay kid?" Solider asked.

"Yeah." Was all Mad Dawg said. "I'm kinda surprised you guys aren't pissed at me."

"For what? Your past is your own." Solider replied. "To be honest, I'm more impressed that you survived all that."

"Yet you never spoke of knowing my grandfather." Hanzo commented.

"I didn't know he was your grandfather."

"Hm."

"It had more to do with the fact that I killed like fifty people."

"My guess was that was the drugs, not you." Hanzo stated.

Something was clearly on Mad Dawg's mind, but Solider had a feeling that trying to dig deeper at this point would be problematic. The ship touched down at their base and Torbjorn, Roadhog, Junkrat, Mercy, McCree, Winston and Ana all got on the ship.

"What are you all doing here?" Solider asked.

"Dawg talked about some machinery he built at his place, felt like I should check it out." Torbjorn commented.

"I'm here because he's here." Roadhog pointed to Junkrat.

"I'm here because there's a giant exploding scorpion apparently." Junkrat commented.

Almost immediately, all eyes turned to Mad Dawg. Who's eyes went comically large.

"Exploding? Eh… Not as much 'exploding' as… You'll see." He sighed.

"Is the young one alright?" Ana asked.

"Can't get a read on him." Solider replied. "He seems okay, but something's on his mind. I don't think he's ready to talk to anyone just yet though.

 _Click_

Mad Dawg watched as _Legacy Mix #1_ began slowly turning in his player. Looking around he saw no one was talking to anyone, so he pulled his headphone jack out and turned the volume dial up. Suddenly, a piano began playing from the tape player. Everyone turned to look at Mad Dawg and suddenly Solider's eyebrows raised.

"Aliotta Haynes?" He asked.

"Yup." He replied with a small smile. Then surprisingly he began quietly singing "There's a road I'd like to tell you about, lives in my home town. Lake Shore Drive the road is called and it'll take you up or down." While he thought it was quiet, most of the ship could hear it. Tracer was absentmindedly swaying to the song at this point, Roadhog was taping his foot and the others were looking to see if he'd continue.

"From rats on up to riches fifteen minutes you can fly. Pretty blue lights along the way, help you right on by. And the blue lights shining with a heavenly grace, help you right on there ain't no road just like I found, running south on Lake Shore Drive heading into town. Just slippin' on by on LSD, Friday night trouble bound." He began playing air piano at that point.

2 hours later.

"…And that's why I'm afraid of wicker furniture." Mad Dawg finished.

"Huh. Never heard of a wicker shark before." Junkrat commented.

"I think we're landing…" Solider 76 called.

"Welcome home." Mad Dawg sighed.

As the heroes left the ship they were surprised by what they saw. In front of the, was a large passageway with the words 'Welcome To The Dog House' spray painted on it. Old rusted trains were lying left and right. Walking in the place seemed like a maze all leading up to a large house at the centre of it all. And a few newer trains covered in a pixel-styled graffiti.

"AM I THE ONLY ONE SEEIN' THE GIANT SCORP?!" Junkrat suddenly exclaimed almost childishly. This caused most of the others to look around confused then gawk at the giant thirty-foot mechanical scorpion standing over them, it's tail seeming like it was pointing right at them.

"Um… MD? Would you mind explaining that?" Winston asked.

"Yeah. That's the ex-wife." Mad Dawg smirked.

"You were married?" Tracer asked bewildered.

"No. I call it that cause it stings like an absolute bitch if it hits you." He said. "It's kinda like a giant version of your Tesla cannon. I built these to keep intruders out."

"These?" Ana asked.

"Follow me."

As the heroes followed the young member along train tracks, he pointed out a giant spider (the nightmare), a carousel with chainsaws (the hinder grinder), a slushy machine (which was just a slushy machine), and several giant robots with machine guns (named Bob, Jack, Mark, Wade, Alfred and Jax). Torbjorn was completely enthralled by their design. Mad Dawg admitted that 86% of the time they didn't work, but were more to scare people. When the reached the entrance, the were greeted by a giant mechanical Phoenix perched above them.

"And this… This is Inferno." He said proudly.

"Magnificent…" Torbjorn breathed.

"If your so good at building this stuff, why didn't you ever sell anything?" McCree asked.

"Nobody wants stuff that's being sold to them by a guy who looks like a junkie. Also, I don't trust people who'd wanna buy this stuff." Mad Dawg commented, punching a code into the door pad. Walking in, dozens of computers and tvs were on, all surrounded by large towers. There were old movie posters, one of Lucio's music poster was on a wall. It was quiet and kinda dark, until Mad Dawg flipped some switches and several neon signs flickered on, followed by the overhead lights, illuminating the graffiti on the walls, a large train was spray painted throughout the main hall accented by tiny pixelated character, one of a girl, and five others, one being Mad Dawg, the others unknown. A worn out couch and a large tv were off to one side, and a cot held up by chains was in a corner. A row of _Dragon Fighter_ arcade machines lined a wall, next to a large set of lockers. In a far corner, a tool bench was set up with several small rc vehicle parts strewn about.

"This…this is your home?" Ana asked.

"Yup." Mad Dawg nodded. "It's all I got."

The group walked into another room where a large table was in the centre of the room, covered by graffiti and stickers. Pulling up a chair Mad Dawg sat down and kicked his feet up. "Welcome to my house."

"How did you build all this?" Winston asked.

"This was a trainyard." Mad Dawg began. "After I was dumped here by my parents, or whoever, I started using scrap to build shelter. After that, I had a run in with a group of hackers. We ran together, had some laughs. They helped build this place, I like trains so I kept tinkering with repairs. After some time passed, two of em' got hitched, one of em got his ass thrown in jail, and the other two decided to start designing video games. We went our separate ways and I stayed. Started building the security squad you saw outside. From there, I never really stopped building." He paused then stood up. "There's beer in the fridge, I gotta take a piss, back in five."

After he was left the room was silent, aside from McCree and Junkrat swiping beers from the fridge.

"He… was dumped here?" Tracer asked, feeling tears in her eyes.

"Perhaps, or maybe something happened when he was young, and he is unable to remember it." Winston commented.

"No." Hanzo stated. "He'd remember something if his family was dead. Or someone would know. He said he never knew them."

"Hey, anyone smell bacon?" McCree asked, setting his beer down.

"Yo! I'm makin' peanut butter and bacon waffles! You guys want some?" Mad Dawg suddenly called.

"Yes." Roadhog replied.

"Alright."

About half an hour later, Mad Dawg was still going back and forth bringing out waffles. Only now did he say: "I dunno how old this waffle mix is so… Sorry if you get sick!"

It was silent around the table for a few moments, then Roadhog resumed eating. Mad Dawg sat down waffleless and cracked a can of Mountain Dew.

"Your not eating love?" Tracer asked.

"Didn't have enough mix to make an extra for me, so I decided screw it. I'll pass." Mad Dawg shrugged.

The heroes looked at one another, then some passed a few waffles down. Mad Dawg smiled.

"Thanks."

"So kid. What is it you need to grab?" Solider asked.

"My journal, my laptop, a few other things." That's all.

"You need to grab some clothes?" asked.

"No. Aside from the clothes I got, all my clothes are at the base."

Upon hearing that, D. Va chocked on her waffles. She had seen that all he had, his jean jacket, track pants, a couple of shirts (two of which he 'borrowed' form Lucio) and that was about it. And most of the heroes were silent as well. Roadhog and Junkrat seemed indifferent, as did Mad Dawg, but out of all the heroes, Ana seemed hurt the most. Probably it was maternal instincts but she felt terrible. Tracer (once again) felt like crying, McCree knew the feeling of having so little throughout most of his life. The group finished, mostly in silence before Mad Dawg left to his room. Looking around he grabbed what he needed, then picked up his stuffed husky, smiling at it he hid it at the bottom of his bag, slinging the backpack on his back he walked back to the group.

"Hey. Before we go, anyone wanna try the mechs?" He asked with a smug grin.

5 Minutes Later…

 _ **BRRZZAT!**_

"YEAH!" The guys collectively shouted as The Ex-Wife decimated a car husk, the electricity crackled violently then the frame began smoking and it went up in flames.

"Is that safe?" Tracer asked from where they were positioned.

"Dunno! Don't care!" Mad Dawg exclaimed.

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Junkrat yelled as another car went up in flames.

"So the group you were friends with just left you with this stuff?" Torbjorn asked, looking at some drawings one of the group had made.

"Like I said, one of them's in jail, two are married, and the other two are designing the new Warcraft expansion. We all kinda ran from here, I came back later and things were just the way they were."

"You have friends in Blizzard?!" Hana practically squealed.

"Yeah. I'll call 'em later." Mad Dawg nodded. "I need to close up. You guys head to the ship. I'll be there soon."

Mad dawg jogged back into the 'brain stem' and punched the code 'D3dS4C' and the words _Security Systems Activated, Parameter Secured._ Appeared on the screen. Mad Dawg looked around for anything he was missing, then saw his old longboard. Grabbing it he rode it out the door and down the metal-laid path he built. Jumping onto the ship he sat next to Ana and opened his journal.

 _Date Unknown_

 _I like these guys, they want to do the right thing, not sure how well I'll do when we hit an actual mission but until then, I'm gonna stay. I think I might be able to do some good here. Then again, maybe it'll all go to shiz again. It's been awhile since I last opened up, maybe I'm just afraid of being hurt... But this time, the risk might be worth it._

Closing the journal he looked over at Ana who smiled at him.

"Everything alright little one?" She asked.

"…yeah." He smiled.

 **A.N. I Don't Own _Lake Shore Drive_**


	7. Serenity NOW!

**A.N. So… before I begin…**

 **1.5 K views.**

 **YEAHHHHHHHHH!**

 **THANKS TO** _ **EVERYONE**_ **Who's checked out the first six chapters. Thanks to the four reviews from a guest, ZED147, Dark, and Mike5122000! Thanks for the nine followers, and thanks for the 9 follows and six favs! This story started out as a joke, but quickly grew into something I really enjoy. There's a lot more to come, but before we jump head long into another story arc, I wanted to take a breather. This chapter should still be entertaining, but I'm trying something a little… Different. It nearly (or shortly after) Thanksgiving when this chapter comes out, and instead of having a chapter of Mad Dawg, Reinhardt, Torbjorn, McCree and company have a drinking/turkey eating contest, I want to write a chapter about family. Which to me is what Thanksgiving is really about.**

 **Also, feel free to review and give critique. A writer's only as good as his critics. (Said no one ever.) Also, if you'd like, I'd be willing to hammer out a short chapter which is just a profile on Mad Dawg, so you can get an idea of who he is, what class he'd be in if he was an actual character, and what his powers are. But hey, onto the story!**

It was Thursday.

Mad Dawg really liked Thursdays.

Why? Oh that's simple. To Mad Dawg, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, you actually had to try and do your job. On Thursday, you could say 'Screw it! It's the weekend!' Even though it was still two days till Saturday. Also, no one ever tries on Friday, because everyone knows 'It's the weekend in eight hours. Who cares?' This meant you could half-ass most jobs on Thursday and no one would care, because we all knew it was almost the weekend. It _may_ also have something to do with the fact that Mad Dawg's payload and capture schedule gave him Friday's off. So currently, he was lying in a hammock, 14 straws connected together to form a obscenely long straw which your mother like to suc-

 _Really?_

Hey. That joke wrote itself.

 _No it didn't. You wrote it._

My point exactly. Anyhow, it formed a 'mega-straw' which ended in a two-liter jug of Mountain Dew which he… Ah screw it. Which he stole from D. Va's room when she wasn't looking.

"And I don't regret it." Mad Dawg said aloud.

About twenty minutes passed and Mad Dawg was still lying in his hammock. Sipping away. He opened his sketch book and kept drawing. After a while he closed the book and tossed it off to the side.

"Excuse me." Came a voice.

Glancing over he saw the youngest Overwatch member Efi Oladele.

"Hey kid." He said lazily.

"Are you the one they call Mad Dog?" She asked quizzically.

"Dawg. But yeah. I'm Mad Dawg. It's… Effie right?"

"Efi, actually." Efi corrected.

"Okay. What's going on Efi?" Mad Dawg asked.

"How do you do it?" Efi suddenly asked.

"Do what?"

"Nothing."

Mad Dawg opened his mouth to respond, then just stared at her in confusion, as he realized what she had asked.

"What?" Was all he could eventually say.

"How do you spend your time being content with nothing?" Efi rephrased her question.

"It…I…Uh…" Mad Dawg trailed off. "I guess being lazy just comes naturally to me."

"Well, it seems like something else. You clearly are a skilled fighter and survivor expert, so it isn't just pure laziness."

"Y'know. I don't know if I'm annoyed because your so damn smart, or if it's because I've got no good responses thought of right now."

Yeah… Sorry about that.

 _Don't be. This kid's like freaky smart._

"Well, do you think you could show me how you relax?" Efi asked.

"Uh. Okay kid." Mad Dawg flipped over in the hammock and dragged himself out. "C'mon."

 _5 Minutes Later…_

"How is this relaxing?"

"Don't question it. Just relax."

Mad Dawg and Efi were sitting on lawn chairs staring out at the view form one of the towers at the Watchpoint Gibilatar base.

"I don't get it. We're just sitting here." Efi stated.

"Yeah. This is how you relax." Mad Dawg replied. "Look, the more you think about it, the harder it is. Clear your mind and relax."

Efi tried too, but every time she tried to clear her mind, issues or questions jumped into her mind. She was busy thinking about upgrades for Orisa she could possibly make, or potential life support upgrades for Genji. Then she heard Mad Dawg snoring loudly.

"Really?!" She stated annoyed.

"Gah!-What?" Mad Dawg gasped waking up. "Oh. Sorry. How you doing?"

"I don't understand. How do you make relaking seem so easy?!" Efi grumbled annoyed. "I'm starting to believe that the reason you are so relaxed is because your too lazy to do anything of value."

Mad Dawg flipped up his sunglasses and looked quizzically at her.

"You ever seen a man die?" He suddenly bluntly asked.

"Wh..what?"

"You ever seen a man die?" Mad Dawg asked. "And I don't mean in a movie. Ever seen a man's head cracked open and insides spewed all around?"

Dude. Where are you going with this?

 _Trust Me._

That's not helping.

Efi just stared at Mad Dawg, unsure if what he was serious or not. From what she had heard, Mad Dawg was a warrior. A fighter. But he also seemed to be out of shape and lazy. Either way, she was unsure of what to say.

"No. I haven't." She finally replied.

"I have." Mad Dawg stated. "A lot. I've seen good men die for what they believe, I've seen people die for nothing. Hell, I've killed a lot of men. Not nearly good men, but still men. The things I've done don't make me happy, but it makes the time I can spend not fighting out there all the more enjoyable. If you wanna focus your whole life on work or something, go ahead. But if the time you spend working or is what you do to relax, you don't need my help, you already know how to relax." Kicking his feet back up, Mad Dawg flipped his shades down and rested his hands behind his head. Efi was quiet, questioning everything he had just said. In the one hand, Mad Dawg was nuttier than a jar of super crunchy peanut butter, but one the other hand, he made good points. Suddenly, she realized why she was struggling to relax like Mad Dawg did. She wasn't thinking like him.

"What do you think about?" She then asked. "When you relax?"

Mad Dawg pondered this for a moment then shrugged. "Fishing." He replied. "I enjoy fishing when I need to relax."

Efi went quiet and began shifting through different thoughts, then she remembered as a child assembling puzzles with her mother. Smiling at the thought, she sat down on a chair next to Mad Dawg and leaned back, finally feeling a calming sense as she got comfortable. Hearing something rustling, Mad Dawg held a bowl of chips over to her.

"Tritos?" He offered.

Efi smiled and took a handful and began eating them.

Off to the side, Mercy (who was looking for Efi) and Solider 76 (who was looking for Mad Dawg) watched the two.

"That's sweet." Mercy smiled.

"Well, I'll admit. His skills may have been strong, but his personality made me weary. But it seems like he's figuring it out."

"Should we tell them the dinner is ready?"

"Nah." Solider 76 said waiving his hand as he walked away. "C'mon. McCree's going to take all the mashed potatoes again." Mercy laughed gently and followed him. As the two left, Mad Dawg felt a buzzing and checked his phone.

Yo Doggy! The turkey's on the table where you at?

-L

Mad Dawg smiled then looked to Efi.

"Hey kid. Another way to fell relaxed is to spend time with your family. In other words, Turkey's on the ta-" He stopped when he saw Efi was peacefully breathing asleep. Chuckling he gently picked her up and carried her back towards the mess hall.

 **A.N. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.**


	8. Dr Junkinstine's Revenge Part I

Pain.

Everything hurt.

His eyes shooting open, Mad Dawg found himself hanging upside down by his intestines, his chest cut open and held in place by hooks. Blood dripped onto his face, one of his eyes was gouged out.

 _What the hell is going on?!_

Hearing an insane laugh, Mad Dawg's eye darted around frequently. He didn't see anyone, and that made him even more nervous.

"SURPRISE!" A man shrieked insanely, appearing directly in front of Mad Dawg's face. His white hair spiked off in all directions, his mouth contorted into a wicked, insane grin.

"Junkrat?" Mad Dawg mumbled.

"Nope!" The man laughed. "You have the honor or meeting the one and only Dr. Jamison JUNKINSTINE!" Dr. Junkinstine laughed insanely, lightning cracking above them as Mad Dawg saw he was in an old style castle.

"What…?" Mad Dawg weakly asked. Suddenly, a surge of electricity blasted through Mad dawg, making him scream in pain, and awaken fully.

"Don't go dyin' on me yet ol boy!" Dr. Junkinstine laughed. "There's _SO_ much I want to do with you!"

"Screw…you.." Mad Dawg garbled as foam and blood dripped form his mouth.

"Eww… Maybe I shouldn't use so much juice next time." Dr. Junkinstine mused, thinking something over. "Never the matter! I'm sure you'll make a simply psychotic addition to the roster!"

 _Dude… Where are you doing? This isn't funny!_

"Still. You ain't of much use to me with your inside all… on the outside." Suddenly producting wire and a knife from somewhere Dr. Junkinstine laughed again. "Guess I'll have to patch you up!"

"No…way…in hell." Mad Dawg spat weakly. Using what strength he had, he twisted his body, tearing the hooks from his flesh and falling downwards. Using one of the rusted blades, Mad Dawg tried to cut the wires still holding him in agonizing pain, but only made a few scratches.

"Wow. I was not expecting that." Dr. Junkinstine commented. "You know you ain't making this easy for anyone right?"

 _SHULK!_

Out of options (and frankly sick of this chapter) Mad Dawg drove the blade into his chest. If he couldn't escape in life, he would find solace in death.

"Aw c'mon now boy!" He could hear the mad doctor exclaim annoyed as everything began to fade to black. Blood gushing from the stab wound, among other injuries, Mad Dawg shut his eyes, ready to accept his fate.

"My servants never die!"

Suddenly feeling rejuvenated. Mad Dawg's eyes opened wide. Looking down, he saw his body was completely healed, all the cuts and hooks were gone! Had some sort of magical power saved him?

Nope!

 _Go f**k yourself._

Looking up he saw the Mad Doctor looking relieved and he saw…

"Mercy?" He asked confused.

Standing before him was a beautiful witch, with flowing blonde hair. She had (presumably) a spell book on her waist-

 _Please for the love of God tell me that isn't the Necronomicon Ex Morticus!_

And instead of Mercy's staff, she had a broom. With a kind smile but evil intention in her eyes, she tilted her head to the side as she giggled.

"No darling. Not mercy. But your doom."

"Aw crap." Mad Dawg grumbled as he saw large shackles holding his arms and legs down as he sat in a chair.

"Thanks for the save miss!" Dr. Junkinstine said wiping sweat from his forehead. "Almost lost im'! And this one's too valuable to lose!"

"Remember what you owe me." The Witch stated.

"O'course, o'course."

"It's been fun my sweet, but I must be going." She teased as she held Mad Dawg's chin in her hand. She inspected him for a moment before kissing his forehead.

As she began to leave, Mad Dawg shouted. "Have fun at your midnight showing of Hocus Pocus! You Sanderson Sister reject!"

"What are you goin' on about now?" Dr. Junkinstine asked, scratching his head.

"Oh shut up and start torturing me." Mad Dawg growled.

 _Meanwhile in a tavern…_

"And so I slayed the beast!" A Viking declared loudly. Smalling his fist on the table as he finished his story, causing a loud cheer form the patrons. Everyone was so invested in the Vikings story that no one noticed an old man enter the tavern. He looked around then walked over to a table in the back where another man was sitting.

"Who are you?" The man asked.

"I'm one of the Lord's gaurds." The Guard stated. "Are you VanHelsing?"

The man tilted his hat up and looked at the Guard. "Didn't think there were any of you left."

"I'm one of the few left." The Guard simply replied. "I need help. The Lord is nervous about Dr. Junkinstine attacking his castle."

"Dr. Junkinstine? He's real?" VanHelsing asked, genuinely surprised.

"Yes. He is being assisted by the Witch and the Reaper…" The Guard explained but stopped when he saw VanHelsing's eyes narrow at the mention of the Reaper. "You know him?"

"Many men have heard the legend." VanHelsing said tilting his hat back, revealing a large scar across his eye. "I fought him. My family died because of him."

"If we find Junkinstine, we'll find the Witch. And if we find the Witch, we'll find the Reaper."

VanHelsing seemed to be deep in thought for a few moments before standing up. He nodded in conformation. The Guard didn't need to ask, he knew the answer. Then their eyes turned to the Viking.

"Should we bring him along?" The Guard asked.

"No."

 **A.N. Before anyone asks, no. This is not** _ **Bad Blood**_ _,_ **this was an idea I got while playing Junkinstine's Revenge. This is going to be a two or three parter. It's a Halloween story, and I think you'll like the ending. Until next time, feel free to review, and I'm out!**


	9. Dr Junkinstine's Revenge Part II

Three hours had passed and now Mad Dawg was chained into a room and it was dark. His body ached form the experiments and currently he couldn't see anything. It went quiet for a long while and he had gotten some sleep and now he was awake again, trying to find anything. A door, a key, a rock so he could make a door.

"Who are you?" A voice came.

"I'm…Beast." Mad Dawg stated, hoping that sounded intimidating or believable. "Listen I don't know who you are, and I can't see you. Who are you?"

A reddish-orange flame appeared and any hope of Mad Dawg potentially escaping disappeared. In front of him was a demonic looking woman, she had two large horns and a strange crease across her chest which was oddly illuminated. The flame was emitted from her hand.

"I am The Summoner." The Summoner introduced herself. "My, my Beast. You're a young one aren't you? Very young…but not childish, more…mature."

 **Hey everyone! It's me the author. I'd like to deliver this important message. Mad Dawg is not supposed to be romantically involved with wither the Summoner or the Witch. They're just taunting him.**

"Your point?" Mad Dawg grumbled.

"I was simply expecting someone older for the offering." The Summoner replied.

"…Offering?" Mad Dawg asked, eyes growing wide. "I'm supposed to be one of Junkinstine's creations. Not sure what this whole 'offering' thing is about. Last I checked, he had a deal with the Witch. Not you." This seemed to agitate the Summoner, unbeknownst to 'Beast' Junkinstine had at one point called upon the Summoner for help, but rejected her abilities in favor of the Witch.

"Do not _**dare**_ compare that putrid wench's power to mine!" The Summoner suddenly demanded, her eyes blazing in anger, fire forming at her hands. "YOU WILL _**BURN**_ FOR YOUR IGNORANCE!" In a bright flash, she disappeared into smoke, leaving Mad Dawg alone again.

"Well, good to know I have such great people in my fan club." Mad Dawg tiredly laughed aloud. "Certainly not people who would be so influenced by a joke I made that they would swarm a popular fast food restaurant or anything…"

 _Meanwhile…_

"You sure this is the way?" VanHelsing asked.

"Yes." The Guard replied. "I've traveled this road many a time."

"If you say so." VanHelsing commented, looking around.

With the sound of rustling bushes, the two turned, weapons drawn for anything.

"Lay yer weapons down!" A voice commanded.

To VanHelsing's annoyance, the Viking from the bar came out from the bushes. His hammer in hand, looking up at the Guard and VanHelsing.

"Who are you?" The Guard asked.

"I've gone by many names." The Viking commented. "But many call me, Viking."

 _Wow. Reeall original names here._

…And 'Mad Dawg' is?

 _Certainly better than naming characters what their skins were._

If that's the case, The Guard would be the Possessed or something. Now you may wanna save your breath, Junkinstine's coming for another round of experiments.

 _Oh son of a bit-_

"What are you doing here?" VanHelsing asked, not in the mood to deal with the Viking.

"Word has it there's a child trapped in Junkinstine's castle." The Viking replied. "I intend to save him."

The Guard and VanHelsing looked at one another, surprised and nerve wracked by this development.

"Who told you this?" The Guard asked, eyes narrowing.

"He did." The Viking said, point behind the two. Turning they saw a man wearing white robes, his skin darkened. Looking like ashes from a fire had clung to him, he was armed with a bow and arrow and silently stood there, watching the two.

"Who the hell are you?" VanHelsing asked, reaching for his gun.

"I once was a man of honor." The Archer began. "I went to rescue my brother from Dr. Junkinstine, I was captured as well, he performed horrible experiments on me before I was finally killed. My soul was restless, and returns now to finish what I have started. Now, people call me, the Demon. My body remains in the castle, and I am able to look through my old eyes. There is a young man in there, the mad doctor intends to turn him into a hideous beast." The Demon closed his eyes then grimaced. "Even now he is torturing him."

"If that's the case, we ain't got time to debate this. If you're coming with us, keep up." VanHelsing said, beginning to run towards the castle.

 _Meanwhile… IN MIAMI!_

…

Wait.

Miami doesn't exist yet…

Huh.

Well. How's everyone's day been? I'm doing fine.

…

Yup…

 _Meanwhile… In Junkinstine's lab…_

"GYAAAAAHHH!" Mad Dawg screamed as a large amount of electricity surged through him, he felt like his insides were being torched (dare I say… _**Skorched?**_ No? Okay.) by the intensity of it. Junkinstine had carved him up multiple times at this point, fascinated by Mad Dawg's healing factor, and now wanted to figure out what caused it. But nothing seemed to work. At this point Junkinstine was just throwing everything at the wall (or in this case, Mad Dawg's body) to see what would work. Eventually, he grabbed a syringe with a bright red liquid and looked at it.

"Eh. What the hell." He shrugged. Then jammed it into Mad Dawg's chest and plunged it into his bloodstream. Yanking a chain, the roof opened revealing a full moon, shining brightly.

" _ **DAMN IT JUNKINSTINE! I'M GONNA FREAKING GUT YOU!**_ " Mad Dawg yelled through gritted teeth and insane eyes. Twisting and pulling against the chains as hard as he could. He began to feel his teeth grinding harshly, suddenly they began cracking and pushing their way out of his mouth, a new set forcing their way in. Tearing at his gums, his fingernails began to extend unnaturally and his arms and hands became much more brutish. His breathing was becoming very erratic and more like a deep growl.

"Yes! **YES! YEESSSSSS!** " Dr. Junkinstine cackled like the mad doctor that he was. "I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT'S HAPPENED, BUT IT'S ALL PART OF MY PLAN!"

Now letting out an animalistic howl, Mad Dawg's spine began contorting as the hair on his body began to rapidly grow, now it was also darkening to a blackish-brown. His teeth were now razor sharp and he let out a long, horrifying howl.

 _Back with the others…_

"Did you hear that?" The Guard asked.

The others went silent listening for anything in the air. The Archer shut his eyes and sighed sadly. "We're too late." He stated. "Dr. Junkinstine has transformed the young one into a monster. We have failed."

"Like hell we have." The Guard said narrowing his eyes, picking up his gun. "We're gonna make that sick doctor pay." The Viking gripped his hammer, while VanHelsing spun his gun and the Archer took his bow off his back, "Let's go." The Guard began running. The group followed until they reached a large wooden door.

"This is it." The Archer nodded. "The lord remains in his castle. If we wait here until tomorrow we should…"

"Screw that. Where's the doctor?" VanHelsing cut the Archer off. "This sick bastard has to pay."

The four drew their weapons when they heard something grunting. Casting weary glances in all directions, no one saw anything… And that was what scared them. Suddenly, a swarm of hands burst from the ground, and a horde of metallic beings drug themselves up and shambled towards them.

"What are these things?" The Guard asked.

"The Doctor called them Zomnics." The Archer commented.

The Zomnics screeched and began staggering towards the heroes. The Viking roared and began firing his gun at the beasts. The guard and VanHelsing joined in whole the archer climbed up a wall to scout for any more threats. His eyes widened when he saw a hulking green monster which was stitched together with a giant hook and gun and an animalistic furry beast following along with Junkinstine himself and the Reaper, flying above them was the witch.

"They're coming!" He called.

As the heroes began to fight the Zomnics a loud insane voice called out. "I'M BACKK!"

"Dr. Junkinstine…" The Viking said in shock. "He's back."

"I told you that!" The Guard snapped.

"I was unsure if you were telling the truth…" He mumbled.

" _Awoooooooo!"_ A loud voice called after Junkinstine's laughter died down. The four looked up and saw the wolfish monstrosity illuminated by the moonlight, blood dripping from its mouth and its teeth and claws glistening.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! THE BEAST!" Junkinstine declared, motioning to 'Beast'.

Mad Dawg looked at the heroes and launched himself forward, running on all fours. The Guard drew his gun and fired rapidly at 'Beast'. Mad Dawg launched himself at The Guard but The Archer lodged several arrows into Beast's side, knocking him off to the side where he skidded across the ground.

VanHelsing blasted another Zomnic away when he saw the Reaper watching him. The two locked eyes and VanHelsing narrowed his eyes, fury and vengeance taking precedence. The Reaper disappeared then appeared near VanHelsing. Realizing what it was suggesting, VanHelsing holstered his gun and swung at the beast. Reaper dodged and hit him in the gut.

The Viking's turret was blasting at the large green monster as it continued to come closer towards him. He had never seen a creature like this and for the first time in a long time, he was frightened. Then something snapped in his mind. _You fought Blackbeard and won! You're not afraid of anything!_

Beast/Mad Dawg scrambled back up and attacked the Guard again, the two locked hands (not in the romantic way) and the Guard saw Beast's face up close, what was apparently a young boy once was now a twisted monster.

"I'm sorry." He said.

 _ **BLAM!**_

Firing a rocket directly into the monsters face, Mad Dawg reeled back howling in pain, then his neck snapped back, his fur singed and smoke wafting away.

And he was PISSED.

"Aw, crap." The Guard muttered.

With a monstrous roar, Beast lunged at the guard…

Mad Dawg suddenly woke up with a gasp, looking around nervously, he found himself in his quarters in the Overwatch HQ. Looking at his chest, it wasn't hairy. Looking at his hands, they weren't paws.

"It was all a dream?" He said aloud. "Dude! Seriously? That's weak!"

Well, what did you want me to do? There was LITERALLY NO WAY we could've ended this with leaving a giant plot hole! We didn't set up any sort of time-travel element, no reference to Tracer's chronal accelerator going on the fritz. No mention to you being hit on the head by Reinhardt's hammer. Nothing.

 _Is that my fault or yours?_

Neither. It's the authors.

 **What?! Don't drag me into this!**

 _Well, he does have a point._

 **Oh screw you!**

 _I'm out._

Getting his track shorts and shirt on he stumbled out the door and down to the mess hall. Thinking over the dream he had. One thing remained clear however, that the dream he had would make an awesome movie. Entering the mess hall he saw the man he needed to talk to right away.

"Yo Junkie!" He called walking over to Junkrat and Roadhog.

"Doggo! What's happening?" Junkrat called back.

"I had an idea for a movie which is gonna make us rich."

"I love it." Junkrat said without a second thought. "What is it?"

"It's called, _The Terror of Dr. Junkinstine_." Mad Dawg said with a dramatic tone. "I had a really weird dream which essentially gave me the entire plot last night!"

"Well ya drongo, don't keep us waitin'!" Junkrat eagerly exclaimed. "Let's hear it!"

"Okay, so there's this mad doctor named Junkinstine ya see, and his plan is to create an army of monsters. That's where Roadhog and I come in."

"Me?" Roadhog said confused.

"Yeah. Your Junkinstine's monster!" Mad Dawg explained. "And then I'm a giant wolf beast, and there's four heroes who are coming to protect an old castle and…"

45 Minutes Later…

"Then what?" Hanzo asked, having joined the small group.

"I…I woke up, so I have no idea how it ends." Mad Dawg replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Aw c'mon mate! Don't do us like that!" Junkrat cried in false pain. "That was such a cool story! You HAVE to know how it ends!"

 _Dude. I need your help. NOW._

 **Working on it! Uh…How about in the wake of the battle, VanHelsing vanquishes the Reaper, The Archer's curse is lifted after he defeats the Summoner, the Guard is forced to kill the Beast, but dies himself from his wounds, and the Viking defeats Junkinstine's monster.**

 _Awesome! But what about the Doctor and The Witch?_

 **Sequel hook.**

"Okay… I think I got something." Mad Dawg said, getting everyone's attention as they argued amongst themselves how the story should end. "What if, and this is just a what if: VanHelsing slays the Reaper, finally getting the closure on his family, which also allows the Reaper's soul to pass, The Archer is redeemed by his actions and is allowed passage way to the afterlife, the Viking defeats Junkinstine's monster, and the Guard is forced to kill the Beast but dies himself from his injuries.

"Wait. You're the Beast right?" McCree asked.

"Yeah."

"So you'd die at the end of your own story?"

"Yeah."

"That's a downer."

"Yeah."

"What about the Witch and Doctor Junkinstine himself?" Torbjorn asked, so far he was loving every idea Mad Dawg had and was totally on board should they make this happen.

"The Beast briefly regains control and throws the Doc off the side of the castle where he falls to his death and the Archer manages to supposedly kill the witch. Only for after the credits, it's shown the witch is alive and revives Dr. Junkinstine, who drags the bodies of The Beast and the Monster off, ready to plan his revenge."

"Alright, that works." Roadhog nodded in approval.

"I'm not sure which scares me more. The story itself, or the fact that this could actually work." McCree commented. Thinking over the whole story.

"Ah, Dawg, I've been looking for you."

Everyone turned and saw Tracer and Mercy standing in the doorway.

"It be the Witch herself! Run!" Junkrat hissed, which caused Mad Dawg to try his best to not laugh. He wasn't that successful.

"Yeah, I'm here. Whaddya need?" He asked through his laughs.

"You don't remember? Lena, Hana, Lucio and myself were going to take you to the mall so you could get some new clothes." Mercy replied. Not sure why Mad Dawg was laughing, but she also had a feeling she didn't want to know.

Mad dawg immediately stopped laughing. It was dead silent until Roadhog put one of his giant hands on Mad Dawg's shoulder.

"We'll pray for you." Was all he said.

 **A.N. AND DONE! FINALLY! I think this is the longest chapter yet! Sorry if you think that this is kinda a cop out, but I had no idea as to where I was going to go from here. Originally, this two-parter was a** _ **Saw**_ **story with Mad Dawg which I then realized 'Oh wait, Overwatch has their Halloween event on' so I changed it. Thanks to everyone who has favorited and followed, and reviewed! Keep it up! Next chapter, Mad Dawg's going to the mall to buy clothes! I swear, it'll be more interesting than it sounds.**


	10. Trying to Live A Normal Life

**Three of a kind.**

Two pairs.

 _Full house wins._

 **Oh come on!**

Hm?

 _Woo! Suck it!_

 **How are you so good at Texas Hold Em'?**

Hey. Hey!

 **What?**

There here.

 **What? Agh! You guys! Right story! It's been nearly a month?! Sorry! Things have been busy, so I've had to write when I could when I could. Hopefully you enjoy it.**

"This is stupid."

"You look nice!"

"I look like an idiot."

"No you don't!"

"Yes. I do."

"Lucio, what do you think?"

"It's…not him."

"He looks like an idiot."

"Shut up Hana!"

"What do you think Angie?"

"Umm… It's different…"

Mad Dawg looked at the clothes he was wearing. A long sleeved, collared shirt and cargo pants. He was looking at a mirror with an annoyed face.

"This ain't me." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Sorry Lena."

"Aww! But you look nice!" Lena protested.

"No. He doesn't." Hana cut in.

"Then YOU find something!" Lena shot back, arms crossed.

Hana shrugged and walked away. Mad Dawg sighed, sliding down onto a bench. They had been at this for hours. Angela and Lena had practically _dragged_ Mad Dawg to the town's mall in order to try and find him some clothes. He didn't argue. He didn't want to make Angela or Lena upset. Thankfully, Lucio and Hana had decided to join them, Lucio due to the fact that he felt that girls trying to buy clothes for a boy would end poorly, (so far they had), and Hana because… Mad Dawg had no idea why. Speaking of which, Hana came back and handed him a trench coat, a t-shirt, and grey track pants. Looking at them for a moment, he shrugged and walked back to the change room. After getting changed he walked back out.

"Dude! You look great!" Lucio exclaimed.

"I…I like it!" Mad Dawg agreed looking at himself in the mirror.

"It does suite you." Angela commented.

Mad Dawg looked beyond them and towards the exit to the mall, in his mind he was calculating who would be able to get past the security cameras and who could be a distraction… Currently his thought was Hana would distract the cashier and Lena would run. He'd stay behind and knock witnesses out if need be.

"Hey, MD. You alright man?" Lucio asked, waving his hand in front of Mad Dawg's face. It took a few moments, but Mad Dawg came back into reality.

"Yeah. What're the odds we can get outta here before they contact security?" He asked. Slightly gripping a bag.

The group looked around before Hana simply asked: "What?"

Angie went quiet, then her eyes widened slightly. She reached out and put her hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to worry about stealing your own clothes dear." She said reassuringly. "We support one another, we'll cover it."

While the other three had been arguing, they stopped when they saw the look on Mad Dawg's face. Normally, he was laughing, hollering, shouting at someone over something, or was just in a good mood. But now, he seemed like he was about to cry.

"Hey. Doggo." Lucio said. "It's all right man."

"It's just… You guy pulled me form a terrorist base and gave me a place to crash. You don't ask about what I've gone through, you just accept me… And I never go to thank you for that."

"Are...are you dying or something?" Hana asked, wide-eyed.

"No. Not yet." Mad Dawg laughed, wiping his eyes. "I'm being deadly serious though. Thank you for what you've done for me."

The others smiled, Tracer felt like hugging Mad Dawg, and the others smiled. After buying the clothes, Mad Dawg slipped the trench coat on. The group went to the food court to get lunch. Lena got some sushi, Hana got some fires, Lucio got a hot dog, Angela got some ramen, and Mad Dawg got some tacos.

"So like, you guys have been to Dorado, but where else have you been?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Hollywood." Lucio stated.

"Kings Row." Hana added.

"Eichenwalde, and Hanamura, and Ilios. To name a few." Angela finished.

"Where've you been Doggy?" Hana asked, her mouth full of fries.

"Doggy? Really?" Mad Dawg mumbled. "Aye… Uh, I've been to San Francisco, Canada and Scotland."

"How'd you get to Scotland and back?" Lucio asked, genuinely perplexed.

"I ended up on a boat, then I jumped onto a freight train. Then just kinda kicked around Orkney for a year or two, learned how to make some good firemilk, then I jumped on a fishing boat and came back." He took another bite of his taco before adding. "Started freight-jumping. It took me awhile, but I saw a lot of cool places. Never stayed in one place for too long. Eventually I ended up in San Francisco. That's where I decided I needed a place to live. I think that's why I enjoyed the train yard so much. It reminded me of the good times."

The others seemed captivated, but rather than continue his story, the author decided he needed to continue the overarching story, so Mad Dawg resumed his tacos. Lucio his phone then smirked somewhat turned to Hana.

"Seems like Virus' new track took your newest gameplay video down." He commented. Hana's face seemed to turn red and she growled something in Korean. Lucio backed away somewhat, and Angela tried to hide her laugh. Lena just shot Lucio an annoyed look. Mad Dawg just blinked.

"Who's Virus?"

"Man, I wish I was you." Lucio shook his head. "Virus is a 'EDM-DJ', his words not mine. He uses his music and concerts to _supposedly_ raise money to help families affected by the Omnic Blackout, and just general crappy events in general. But…"

"Wait. Let me guess." Mad Dawg cut him off. "He was an asshatic douchebag who kept the money for himself and gave barely any to anyone who needed it!"

"Yup."

"Ah, so he's the musician version of Hana?"

Lena and Angela both froze where they were, food in the air. Lucio stared in honest shock before bursting out laughing. Hana was redder than before and grabbed a plastic knife, ready to stab Mad Dawg with it. Only for him to suddenly appear in the record shop on the other side of the mall.

 _Thanks man._

Now free from the raging gamer, Mad Dawg looked through the records. He went to the _V_ section and found one of Virus' records. The title was _New City Old People_.

 _Wow. That's just sad._ Mad Dawg thought. _How wannabe hard core is this…_ His thoughts died off when he realized something.

"Hi Doggie…" A familiar female voice came. Mad Dawg's face drained of colour and he slowly reached for a knife, but a hand grabbed his before he could. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Sombra grinning at him, she wasn't wearing the clothes she had when he first met. Her eyes were covered by glasses.

"You…" Mad Dawg began. "Who are you again?"

Sombra's face almost immediately dropped to an annoyed look. She flatly stared at him before letting go of his hand.

"Really?" She frowned. "You don't remember me? How I helped you when we first met? How I saved you from being cut open by Talon's scientists? None of that?"

"First, You said your name once, You didn't help me at all, and it was never established what they wanted with me other than to use me for something. You've been in I think like two chapters and haven't contributed much to my story so…yeah. I don't remember you."

Sombra seemed a mixture of annoyed and confused by half the things which Mad Dawg had said in the last few moments. Then her smile returned.

"Wow. Okay, y'know, a 'Thank you for saving my life' would've been sufficient."

"Yeah, but also being part of a deadly terrorist group which kidnapped a underage kid… makes me _NOT_ wanna thank you for any potentially good thing you did." Mad Dawg retorted. "If you want me to thank you, then tell me what it is about me that you know that your obviously hiding in attempt to blackmail me or whatever."

Sombra smile grew wider. "Oh, you wanna know about your past? Don't worry, you'll know soon enough _Pastelito._ " She said before poking his nose. "Boop."

"Whoa, what're you talking abou-she's gone." Mad dawg began then stopped seeing that Sombra had disappeared.

"What was she talking about?" Mad Dawg muttered. "…This is gonna be a thing for a few chapters ain't it?"

 _Mayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyybe._

"Mad Dawg!"

Turning he saw Lena, Hana, Lucio, and Angela entering the store.

"Where were you?! You _LITERALLY_ disappeared!" Hana exclaimed.

 _Author. Help._

 **A.N. That's all folks! See ya next time! For Mad Dawg's Christmas Special of Good Times and Stuff… See ya then!**


	11. The Spirit of Christmas Part I

Date: December 17th

Location: Somewhere in Rio de Janeiro

"It's the time of year for Christmas cheer, with Krampus on his way… With his eight death deer we're waiting here, excited for the slay…" Mad Dawg sang to himself as he sat on the left arm of Christ the Redeemer statue up on the mountain. He cracked open a root beer and took a long drink. He wiped the foam off of his mouth and whipped out-

 _Be mature._

His binoculars.

 _Oh. My bad._

He gazed around the city, it was an odd and new wonder to him to see the 'city of lights' as he had heard it called. Some people pointed up to him in confusion as it was _technically_ illegal to have climbed up here to drink but hey, you do you. And Dawg'll do Dawg. About four months had passed since he had joined Overwatch, and things were pretty good. He and Lucio were fast friends from the start, and it didn't take much for him and Hana to become friends as well. (Partially because the three of them and Junkrat were the youngest members.) He never really saw him and Hanzo becoming anything more than co-workers, especially after what had happened with him and Dom Kim, but after some training sessions, the two had built a trainer/trainee relationship which constantly changed depending on what they were working on. Torbjorn was fascinated by the security systems he had built, but also understood Mad dawg's fear of them being used as weapons. The two had opposing ideas for the usefulness of certain aspects of machines (Torbjorn didn't understand why Mad Dawg believed that adding a slushy machine was necessary, and Mad Dawg didn't understand why adding emergency shut down systems to their machines were so important.) It hadn't taken much for him and Lena to build a friendship… But then there were Symmetra, Winston, and Solider 76… So from the word go, things were rough with Symmetra. She had walked into the room when Mad Dawg was tipsy and explaining his views on politics, and more importantly, why he was an Anarchist. This _really_ pissed Symmetra off, and she tried to rebuke his stance by explaining how everything needed to be organized and in order. Dawg had replied with, and I quote.

"Yeah? Y'know what was organized? Talons attacks which have killed God knows how many! Y'know what's weird? You think everyone has to agree with what you say, LIKE TALON. You try and control what people think, LIKE TALON. You've got the same 0.001% matters view as that Symmetra-"

"That's Symmetra." McCree had then cut in. Pointing to her.

"Oh. Well… SCREW YOU!"

Thing is, she knew he was drunk and decided to leave it at 'He's intoxicated so he isn't thinking clearly.' The real problem came from the fact that he had then violently thrown upon her and passed out.

 _That may have been a mistake._

Y'think?

Things were better with the other two, Winston was amazed by his natural mutation which allowed Mad Dawg's cells to regenerate so quickly. But something had come up while he was researching their genetic structure which had genuinely frightened him. Something about the shape the D.N.A. was in. But Dawg didn't understand science, so he just decided to give him some space. Then there was the big man. The Solid Snake, The King Bowser…

 _What?_

You'll find out eventually… Solider 76. The first dozen or so missions that Mad dawg was sent on, Solider 76 would be on. When asked about it, he always replied with something like "It's just the way it was set up." Or "Zenyatta's calling in a favor." But MD knew what it really was: _We have no idea what the hell is with you so we're watching you so you don't commit mass genocide or something else that's bad._ And he had a point. Mad Dawg had a tendency to open fire on _anyone_ who was coming at them, including civvies. Thankfully, he had missed and had only injured them, but he could tell 76 was pissed. After a few more 'restrained' missions, he had stopped showing up on every job. But something told Mad Dawg the mistrust he had created wasn't defused yet. If he was being honest, Solider probably hadn't beaten his ass yet because of Ana. Dawg didn't know what it was about her and Solider 76, but she seemed to have a way to calm him. Maybe they were married at one point. But when he asked Farrah about it, she had told him that she didn't know who her father was. He _ALSO_ found out she hated talking about that. So he wasn't sure if they were friends or enemies. Now it was nearly Christmas, and Mad Dawg had _**NO IDEA**_ what to do. Up until about two or three years, Christmas had usually been the following:

Go to a party somewhere

Get stupid drunk (and try to win Beer Pong against Ray.)

But now it was:

Go home and quietly sit on the couch watching cartoons

Hope my friends might call (Even though they don't.)

Now, it was almost Christmas again, but this time Mad Dawg was going to spend it with the Overwatch team! On the one hand, this might be what he's always wanted. But on the other hand, well… Mad Dawg had no idea how to act in a social setting like this would be, where to be at what time and most importantly; what to get everyone. He decided he'd improvise answers to problems one and two, and as for number three, that's why he was in Rio now. Well, also because Torb had built a wingsuit with rocket engines for the agents and needed someone to try it out. None of the agents who _could_ use it were super excited…

Except for Mad Dawg.

Making sure everything was strapped on properly, Mad Dawg breathed then jumped. Feeling the air rush past his face, he thrust his arms out to the side. The wind caught the underside of the wings, and Mad Dawg took off down the mountain. Whooping and hollering in excitement as he shot through the sky.

"Woo! Hoo hooooo!" He cheered as he flew across the mountain side, admiring the beauty of the scenery. Raising his left arm, he banked and flew towards the beach. He took a long drink from his 'flaskpack' -a backpack which had could hold up to three liters of liquid- as he shot down towards the beach. He could see people pointing and looking up. As he flew above them he yelled.

"YO RIO! CHECK ME OUT!"

Flying over the ocean he looked in awe at the sparkling blue water. He felt the foam splash up onto his face and he laughed. Only for him to suddenly realize he was too close to the water. Yelling in shock, he kicked the engines into high gear and he flew back up into the sky.

"Hey Torb!" Mad Dawg laughed into the ear piece he was wearing. "This is AWESOME!"

"Great to hear my friend!" Torb's proud voice came in reply. "But uh… where are you?"

"In Rio!" Mad Dawg replied before flying back down towards the town. He glided across the heart of the town, then took a right and headed for the outskirts of the town, he tilted the wings up, retracting them so he could land…

But forgot about the engines and went flying head first into an abandoned building. Smashing through the wall and rolling across the dusty abandoned floor, skidding to a stop.

"AGH!" He screamed out loud. "THAT FREAKING HURT!"

He pulled a few chunks of wood out, groaning in pain with each one, and his healing factor kicked in and closed his wounds. He shook his head and the cartilage in his back cracked as he straightened himself as he got up. Looking around he saw the house was covered in graffiti, but there was still a table and chairs in the room he crashed into.

 _Seemed like whoever lived here beforehand packed up and hit the road in a hurry…_ He thought.

Yet through all the crude drawings of Omnics and quite a few of Lucio, there was one word repeated over and over.

Vishkar.

He thought back to what Lucio had told him about these guys… It wasn't pretty. In fact, it was the first time Mad Dawg had seen Lucio genuinely angry. And he's be lying if he said it _didn't_ scare him. He'd seen Winston 'Going Ape' (as some called it) or Roadhog going 'Whole Hog', and while it was frightening at first, he got over it quickly. But when Lucio had looked him dead in the eyes and told him the truth, he was freaked out.

" _Vishkar? Damn. You don't know do ya?"_ He had begun with a sigh. _"They claimed they were going to help build our town back after the Omnic Crisis lift us without a home or a community. But… They lied."_ At this point, Lucio looked away, but Mad Dawg could see the anger in his body language.

" _What happened?"_ Mad Dawg asked even though he knew he shouldn't.

" _They took_ _ **EVERYTHING**_ _our home, our friends and family, they used us for cheap labor. They cut down anyone who got outta line. Free speech? Gone. Basic human rights? Gone. We weren't humans to them. We were animals."_ By now, the light and energy in Lucio's face was gone. A mixture of fear and pure anger was all that Mad Dawg could see. And his eyes, they no longer were the eyes of the DJ who wanted to unify the world in peace, the man who gave Mad Dawg a V.I.P. pass to one of his album release parties after seeing him give his food to a homeless man and his dog. The eyes were almost empty, just the eyes of remorse, the eyes of a broken survivor. _"I..I'm sorry Dawg. I didn't mean to go off like that…"_

" _What?! No! Dude! It's_ _ **MY**_ _fault!"_ Mad Dawg had tried to console him. _"I shouldn't've asked. I'm sorry."_

Mad Dawg sighed and opened his backpack. Digging for a moment, he pulled four wheels out and then took the wingsuit off. When Torbjorn had been designing it, he had needed something long and flat to hold the base, so they had used a longboard. Slipping the wheels back on, Mad Dawg went outside and rode on down the sidewalk. He watched the destroyed, trashed, rotting, and in -some cases- burned houses where families once lived, now they were simply husks of their former home. Finally reaching a small one, he sighed sadly when he saw that this house was more damaged than the others, a large part of the roof was gone, there were holes in the wall, seemingly made by sledgehammers, (trust him, Mad Dawg _**KNOWS**_ when a sledgehammer has been used), and bullet holes everywhere.

 _Those bastards probably tried to use this place as a warning… But it just made more people rise up._ He mused. He looked at the faded words in the rusted mailbox, time seeming to have eaten the back of it. But he could make out a few letters.

 _Co e a Dos S t s_

"This is it." Mad Dawg said aloud to no one in particular. Walking up to the remains of Lucio's childhood house, he pushed lightly on the door, and it creaked open on one hinge, tiling down. He clicked on a flash light and walked up the old wooden stairs, each step creaking louder than Reinhardt's joints during warm-ups. He walked down the old hallway until he found a door on the end with a crayon drawing of a frog on the door. Walking into Lucio's old room, Mad dawg pulled a bandana over his face so he wouldn't inhale too much dust. In the rom there were some old pictures of Lucio as a child with others playing soccer, or Lucio trying music making for the first time. They weren't what Mad Dawg was looking for though. Remember how at the beginning of the chapter we talked about Christmas? Yeah, this has to do with that. Mad Dawg sat down on Lucio's old bed, seeing the state the room was in now, pondering on what it would've been like before Vishkar screwed it all up.

 _I hope your dead Vishkar… Dead or able to move really, really,_ _ **REALLY**_ _fast…_ Mad Dawg seethed internally. _'Cause if you aren't and I find you… Oh boy. This story might be rated M if that happens…_

Then Mad Dawg saw what he was looking for, sitting on the headboard. Smiling he picked it up and looked it over. He gently set it in his bag and opened the window to let some air come through. Feeling his goal for coming here was successful, he checked the list he had written.

Angela

Roadhog

Junkrat

Zarya

Kong Kong

Jesse (Bitch! Lol)

Gamer Chick

Lucio

Ana

Cool Rocketeer

Ikea Gnome

MC Hammer

The list went on, naming the other members of Overwatch he needed to get something for. He crossed Lucio's name off and looked at the remaining names. The only _real_ problem he had right now was there were two members of Overwatch he hadn't met. The monk Zenyatta and some guy named Bastion…

 _I'll deal with that when I get to them._ Mad Dawg decided.

His phone pinged and he saw a message from Jay, a guy he had paid to help him with the second part of his gift for Lucio.

Yo Doggy! It's done, what'cha think?

-Jay

Looking at the picture, Mad Dawg grinned. He knew Lucio was gonna _**LOVE**_ this. He replied:

It's awesome!

-MD

Who's a good boy?

-Jay

Don't. Start.

-MD

Shaking his head with a laugh, he looked at the list and chose a random name.

"Lena." He said aloud.

Walking back outside, he began full on sprinting, then he kicked the engines into high gear, jumping and exending his arms, the rocked-power wing suit began to fly, once he was up in the air he began yelling loudly:

"CHEERS LOVE! MAD DAWG'S HERE!"

All throughout Rio, people swore they heard a young boy's laughter.

 **A.N. Part one done! Mad Dawg's getting into the holiday spirit… Even though he ain't totally sure what that is… What do you think he's got for Lucio? What about the others? This is Mad Dawg we're talking about. Things are going to be unique to say the least. Love hearing reviews/ideas from you guys!**


	12. The Spirit of Christmas Part II

Date: December 18th

Location: King's Row

Skidding down a slanted roof, Mad Dawg launched himself off of one roof and ran up another slanted roof before sliding down it. He jumped onto a flat roof, but didn't see the ice and started sliding. Falling off the roof he scrambled to grab onto the ledge but missed.

"Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap!" He shouted. His hands scrambled to grab anything as he plummeted twenty-five stories down, he fell about seven stories before he managed to grab onto a window sill. Smashing into the stone wall.

 _Well, that could've gone better._ He internally groaned. Looking at the bloody print his face had made on the wall. Struggling to pull himself up he climbed through the open window and shook himself off. He then saw a couple setting food on the table staring at him in shock.

"Hi." Was all he said. He looked at the table and commented. "Chicken. Nice."

"Thank you." The woman said.

"I uh…I'm gonna use your front door real quick." He said, and before they could answer, he walked to the front door and left the apartment. Getting into the hall, he sighed.

"Mad Dawg?" A familiar voice came.

Turning around, Mad Dawg (internally) screamed in annoyance. Mei, Tracer, and another woman were standing in the hall.

"Hey guys." He said. "Just uh, just fell off the roof."

"Are you okay?!" Mei asked concerned.

"Yeah. I'm good." Mad Dawg nodded. "Soooo... I don't think we've met." Mad Dawg said looking at the woman with Tracer. "I'm Mad Dawg."

"My name's Emily." Emily introduced herself. "I'm Lena's girlfriend."

Record Scratch. Freeze Frame.

 _Wait. Tracer's a…_

Yes. You didn't know?

 _Well..I..u..she..um..that..boo-_

Is this an issue?

 _What?! No way man! Great for her! It's just…_

Just what?

 _How bad is it?_

Is what?

 _The fan art._

It's… Well, saying it's NSFW would be underselling it.

 _Rule 34's a Bitch ain't it?_

Yup.

 _There's none on me right?_

I'm pretty sure the author doesn't know what you look like.

 **Oh screw you!**

"Well it's nice ta meet ya. Miss Emily." Mad Dawg nodded. "Hey just asking, you have any idea where the party's gonna be? I ain't been to the base for a few days, and I think Kong forgot to CC me."

"It's at Gibraltar." Mei answered. "Most of us'll be there around six."

"Awesome!" Mad Dawg said, walking over to anther window. "See ya then! Or sooner, I dunno." He then jumped out the window and disappeared.

"Did he just…" Emily began in shock.

"It's what he does." Mei shrugged.

Later…

"Gotta get a gift, gotta get a gift, gotta get a gift, gotta get a gift for Tracer…" He sang as he cut through a back alleyway. "What the hell would a time-traveling pilot want?"

Stopping by a store, he saw a Tardis kettle.

"Nah. That's to meta. Even for me." Mad Dawg commented. "Speaking of which, what's Doctor Who?"

Heading towards another shop, he stopped when he saw something. He froze completely for a few moments then shook his head and kept moving. Ducking into an alley again.

 _Just keep moving. Sooner you find something, sooner you can get outta King's Row.. And that means you don't have to deal with-_

Mad Dawg suddenly grunted in pain as something jabbed his neck. He yanked whatever it was out and saw a small arachnid shaped needle.

"S**t." He cursed, falling to his knees, the entire world getting blurry. The poison he'd just been hit with were taking effect. He'd been poisoned before, and it would take a few moments foe the poison to filter out, but when he did… It was awkward.

"Cela devrait vous ralentir." Came a voice. Looking up Mad Dawg could see Widowmaker dangling above him aiming her sniper rifle at him. She holstered it and lowered herself down to the ground.

"Grrgh..Suck my baguette Spider-Gwen." Mad Dawg coughed before feeling some vomit in his mouth. The taste was revolting. He spat it out on her boot and she wrinkled her nose at the smell.

 _I'm gonna throttle you._

Widowmaker put one of her boots on his chest and pointed her rifle at his head.

"Sweet dream _enfant_." She said. Pulling the trigger, the gun clicked.

"What-?"

"Gun jammed?" Mad Dawg coughed weakly. "Safety on?"

"Be quiet!" She snapped. Grabbing him and holding him against the wall. Mad Dawg's hands slowly lowered, his eyes began to close. His intestines felt twisted. Widow watched to make sure he was unconscious. Suddenly, a foot smashed into her chest and she was forced back into a wall. Struggling up, Mad Dawg cracked his neck.

"Let's go." He said. No quip, no joke. Just the fighter's spirit.

Widowmaker rushed forward and tried to kick, but Mad Dawg ducked and moved away. The toxins were slowing him down, but he wasn't going ot go down without a fight. He grabbed a garbage can lid and used it as a shield when her foot came down at him, making a loud _Clang!_ He then smacked her in the side of the head with it, but her helmet absorbed most of the shock.

"Huhh..Barry Manilow is a musician..he write the famous song Copacabana.." Mad dawg mumbled aloud as he was trying to figure out what to do next, the toxins messing with his brain. He grabbed the garbage can and threw it at her, she was hit and staggered back. "It was a song about a couple who have relationship issues and ultimately someone is killed.." Shaking her head, she used her grappling hook and fired, wrapping it around his neck, she yanked it back and Mad Dawg went face down into the snow. She began retracting it and began choking him, Mad Dawg was frantically trying to find anything, but he had left his bag back in the truck he had borrowed. She punched him in the face and he felt his nose crack. She reeled back and punched him again, and again.

Suddenly, a scraggly dog appeared form behind a compost bin and rushed forward barking. Widowmaker noticed it just as it sunk its teeth into her leg. She cried out in pain and the line dropped. She grabbed her gun to shoot the mutt, but Mad Dawg tackled her down and smashed her face with her gun, knocking her unconscious.

 _Y'know that realistically would kill someone._

Realism? Really? And a giant talking gorilla scientist from space is realistic? Or a time traveling British chick, or a robot capable of human emo-

 _Okay! I get it! I'm sorry!_ Mad Dawg grumbled. _Just… Gimmie a break okay?_

Sighing, Mad Dawg walked over to a large dumpster, unzipping his fly, Mad Dawg let out a long burning piss. He groaned in pain and tears formed from the burning feeling, but the poison had to get out somehow.

"And considering how few toilet jokes are in this story, cut us some slack."Mad Dawg addressed the readers. After he was finished, he walked over and picked up the unconscious assassin. He walked back to the dumpster and tossed her in and slid the bar across the lid. He then- Oh no. Don't you _**DARE!**_

"Garbage day." Mad Dawg smirked.

You son of a…

"Hey a dog!" Mad Dawg said seeing the mutt. It snarled at him at first, but Mad Dawg squatted down and unwrapped a burger someone he had gotten earlier.

"You hungry buddy?"

The dog sniffed the air, recognizing the food. It slowly walked forward and nibbled at the food, still with its eyes on Mad Dawg with uncertainty. But eventually it gave into its hunger and took a bite, seeming happy with the food.

"You got a home?" Mad Dawg asked, giving the rest of the burger to the dog, and rubbing it behind the ears. Making it pant happily as it licked it's lips to get the crumbs.

The dog finished the food and then looked to him for more. It was a small dog, a beige yellow lab, clearly not fully grown or having properly eaten in maybe… ever. Also, dirt, debris and junk was sticking to the dog's fur. Despite it's rough exterior, it seemed very friendly as now it was licking his hand to try and get some crumbs.

"Y'know, I bet Tracer…" He began but his voice trailed off as he smiled. "That's it!" He exclaimed. Scooping the dog up he began walking back towards his truck. And as for Widowmaker? Well, when she woke up, she was going to regret picking a fight with Mad Dawg behind a daycare…

Location: 3 Miles from Watchpoint Gibraltar, Mad Dawg's Hidden Safe House.

Opening the garage door, Mad Dawg walked into one of his safe houses he had set up over the past few months, and pulled the door down behind him. He set the dog he found down, (which he had taken to calling Axel) and set to grabbing a large bucket and filling it with water. He found several bottles of shampoo which he had never used and set them next to the bucket. Axel was currently sniffing around curious to this new location he found himself in. Mad Dawg sat down in a bean bag chair he 'borrowed' from the rec room in the Watchpoint and looked at his list again. Only a few names were left.

MC Hammer

Female Bane

Boss 76

Gabby

King Kong

Sighing and kicking his feet up, he looked at Axel who was currently walking in a circle in the bucket. Laughing Mad Dawg got up and walked over and began to wash and clean the dog to whom he owed his life.

 **A.N. Another chapter done! Hope you enjoyed it. If you've got any ideas or questions, let me know in a review! Who do you think Gabby is? You'll find out soon enough! There will be one or two more chapters then the finale (The OverOffice Christmas Party!) Where you'll see what Mad Dawg's been working on for everyone. But no idea when the next chapters will be up… There's a storm brewing in my life… Exams. But until next time, Stay Toasty!**


	13. The Spirit of Christmas Part III

Date: December 22nd

Location: Secret Stash Comic Shop

Cracking his neck as he walked through the door, Mad Dawg looked around one of his favourite places to hang out. The Secret Stash Comic Shop, looking around he saw the newest releases on the shelf; _Sharknado 63: How The Hell Did Anyone Think This Was A Good Idea?, Dark Souls 12 Ball-Breaker Edition,_ and so on. He wasn't here for a reason, other than to screw around. Walking behind the counter and opening the door to the basement, he walked down to where a group of guys were currently playing _Magik The Summoning._

"Oh dude! Dawg's back!" One of them exclaimed looking up. The others looked up and all exclaimed "Hey!"

"Hey guys!" Mad Dawg smirked. "How's life been since I was last back?"

"Meh, not too much has changed." One of the guys commented. "Jay and his friend are still annoying people out front, Randal and I are still doing nothing, and comics are still being published."

"Nice, nice." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Your order came in." Randal commented. "What the hell did you order?"

Rand led Mad Dawg over to a HUGE box with the Blizzard logo on it, and a post-it note with 'MD' on it.

"Sweet." Mad Dawg grinned.

"Look, you've probably got a way, but how the hell are you going to get this thing out of here?" Randal asked. "It took us two and two delivery Omnics just to get it out of the truck and down here."

"You don't remember? He's got that magic sack." Dante commented, looking at his new hand.

"Magic sack?"

"My messenger bag." Mad dawg nodded. "It can hold up to a certain amount in it. Gimmie a sec." He said as he swung his bag off his shoulder.

 _Where'd I get this bag?_

It's part of your character.

 _Okay. What's the limit of space?_

25

 _25 What?_

It's like an RPG inventory bag.

 _Ah._

Opening his bag, Mad Dawg saw what he had.

Camo Combat Crossbow – 5

Oreos – 2

4 Rubber Chickens – 2

Double Barrel Shotgun – 8

'Entertainment' Magazine - 1

Spaces left, 7

He looked at the box and the stats appeared.

Blizzard Box – 20

"Damn it." Mad Dawg grumbled. Rummaging through the bad, he removed the four rubber chickens, and the bag of Oreos, the crossbow and the shotgun and put the huge box into his bag. Randal watched in amazement then Mad Dawg looked back to what he had taken out, debating how to use the remaining four spaces. He felt like walking through town with a shotgun and a crossbow would be an issue, but this was America.

"Dude." Dante said amazed. "What the hell."

"I know. Amazing isn't it?" Mad Dawg commented. He paused then looked at the weapons and the rubber chickens. "How am I getting these back?"

 _ **Later that day…**_

Suddenly appearing from behind the refrigerator, Mad Dawg was back at the base. Grabbing a soda from the fridge, he walked into the rec room where McCree and Hanzo were playing pool.

"Hey! Mad Dawg!" McCree called. "We're missing a bean bag chair! Y'know where it went?"

"No." Mad Dawg lied. He was about to jump onto the couch when the doors opened and a Bastion unit entered.

"HOLY SHIT! A BASTION!" Mad Dawg screamed in terror. He grabbed his shotgun and cocked it before firing at the Omnic, he missed due to his panicked state and immediately had the weapon knocked from his hands by one of Hanzo's arrows. Mad Dawg lurched forward and attacked the Bastion, but one of McCree's flashbangs got there before Mad Dawg and caused him to stop in confusion as to where he was. Pretty quickly, Reinhardt and Winston had appeared, and had to hold Mad Dawg back. His eyes going completely insane, he was struggling trying to get away. Bastion was completely confused as to what was happening, so he made the mistake of walking _TOWARDS_ Mad Dawg, who successfully broke free and reached for his gun, only to suddenly drop asleep from one of Ana's sleep darts.

"What the hell just happened?" McCree finally asked once things had calmed down.

"He saw the Bastion unit… And lost it." Hanzo commented, answering the most common question for the others who had just showed up.

"He didn't know there was a Bastion unit on the premises?" Winston asked bewildered.

"Well, Bastion's been down for repairs recently, and the missions he's been on and the one's Mad Dawg's been on never intersected." Reindhardt added. "Perhaps he didn't know."

"But why did the young one act with such fear?" Ana asked. "He has fought agents of Talon and never seemed afraid of them."

"He spent most his time runnin' from em'." McCree corrected her. "He fought WITH us, and ran when he was alone."

"Perhaps he's hiding his true self." Winston stated. "From everyone, even himself."

Meanwhile, Zarya was walking to the gym when she saw Reindhardt carrying a sleeping Mad Dawg towards the medical bay.

"What happened?" She asked, getting the Crusader's attention.

Reindhardt sighed. "He had an unfortunate…encounter with the Bastion unit. Commander Ana had to uh.. Calm him down."

 _Can't blame him._ Zarya frowned. _Damn Omnics…_

After dropping him off at Mercy's office, Reindhardt left to let the doctor do her work. Aside from a spike in adrenaline -which Mercy believed was nothing new to Mad Dawg- she found he was okay physically. Mentally… She had no idea. Slider 76, McCree, Ana and Hanzo all entered to see how he was doing as Mad Dawg began to wake up.

"Agh…shit." He groaned. "What happened?"

"You went berserk when you saw the Bastion unit." 76 got right to the point. "What was that about?"

There wasn't an answer right away. In fact, the four had a feeling there wouldn't BE an answer-

 _No. We need to tell them._

Dude, are you sure?

 _Yeah. They're not like the others…_

"I have a…problem. With Omnics." Mad Dawg began slowly, his eyes seeming glazed, afraid, as if he was seeing something too traumatic to recount. "The junkyard."

"What junkyard?" Solider 76 asked. His voice not conveying anything other than the normal serious tone.

"Before I lived in the train yard, I lived in a junk yard."

"So?" McCree replied confused. "What about it?" Hanzo hit him in response, trying to tell him that was the wrong answer.

Mad Dawg's hands were on his legs, and his nails were so deep into his skin blood was dripping out. He paled completely.

"It was an Omnic graveyard."

The group froze, unsure how to react to that. Ana genuinely paled, McCree seemed sick, Hanzo's frown deepened and Solider 76 listened intently.

"When I got dumped in that junkyard, there were Omnic corpses everywhere… Bastion units, turrets, normal omnics…they..they..th..they weren't even completely dead sometimes!" Mad Dawg began stammering, his eyes seeming to be brimming with tears. "Some of them were begging me to kill them..there were some that were sliced in half, but were dragging themselves around. Eventually I started running, by the time I stopped, my feet were so badly blistered, even my healing factor was having trouble healing them." He rubbed his feet, still not looking up at the group. "I jumped on a train and fell asleep. When I woke up, one of the guys I ended up staying with found me. He and his friends felt bad and let me stay with them, and you know the rest."*

"The Bastion unit here isn't like the others." Solider 76 began. "Oddly enough, he feels emotions. He won't attack you if you walk by, unless you hurt his bird he'll leave you be."

Mad Dawg nodded.

"Okay. But right now I need some space." He said.

"Wait, I need to take a few-" Mercy began but Mad Dawg had already walked through the doors, then re-appeared at his hideout. Axel barked loudly and ran over to his new best friend.

"Hey buddy." He sighed. "Just two days and you'll have some new friends!"

Axel jumped up and licked Mad dawg's face happily. Laughing Mad Dawg sat down and began scratching the dog's ears, causing Axle to nuzzle his head against Mad Dawg's chest. Tossing his messenger bag off to the side, MD flopped down onto his cot and grabbed his phone. He opened messages and one from Junkrat appeared.

Ay Mate. Heard you had a heart attack or somethin'. WTF happen?

Didn't know there was a Bastion on the team.

So?

Got a problem with em'.

Don'we all…

Tossing his phone onto a nightstand, Mad Dawg looked at the list he had been working down and crossed Hana's name off. Only one name remained.

Gibby

Groaning aloud and throwing the list against a wall, Mad Dawg flopped back down and shut his eyes.

 _Just three more days…_ He thought. _And what am I gonna do for the G-Man?_

 **A.N. Okay, short chapter, I know. The next two or three will be longer. Thanks to everyone who's reviewed and followed and favourited so far! Maddie's not done yet. He still needs a present for someone… Then there's the Office Christmas Party! This season is gonna make Mad Dawg un poco loco!**

 ***Do you want to hear the full story?**


	14. The Spirit of Christmas Part IV

Date: December 23rd

Location: Quickly changing

" **DIE! DIE! DIE!"**

 _THIS WAS A TERRIBLE IDEA!_

Mad Dawg dove over a counter in a jewelry as Reaper's Death Blossom fired off violently outside. The Talon enforcer was blasting pretty much anything that moved, Mad Dawg was digging through his bag like crazy trying to find anything to help him hide, his chainsaw stuck in a wall. Suddenly, the doors were blown off their hinges and he stormed in with both shotguns drawn, smoke wafting off his cloak as he re-formed and looked for Mad Dawg.

"Ay mon."

Turning around and aiming his shotguns, Reaper was face to face with Mad Dawg wearing a Jamaican Tam and now had long blonde dreadlocks. The front of the Tam covered his eyes and was hoping this would fool Reaper.

"You doin'allrigh?" He asked in a terrible accent. "You just blew my doors offa the hinges."

Reaper didn't respond and stared right at Mad Dawg. Even though he couldn't see Reaper's face, he could tell he had the biggest _You've got to be kidding me._ Look on his face.

"I'm looking for a young adult. Maybe seventeen. Saw him run in here." Reaper said in his dark tone.

"In 'ere? Ay mon. I thinks you got da wrong store. I tink he was in the middle of da street not looking lef or right so he…"

Reaper reached forward and pulled the tam and dreadlocks off of the man's head. Mad Dawg stopped talking and then smiled.

"Hey Reapy."

 _Click._

Mad Dawg's eyes went huge as a shotgun was aimed right at his face. Again.

 _Half an Hour Earlier…_

Landing on a roof and deactivating the jets on his wingsuit, Mad Dawg kicked his feet off of the edge of the building. He watched the city go by for a few moments. Then he got bored.

"Greetings Dawg."

Glancing over his shoulder, Mad Dawg sighed in relief when he saw Genji standing on the other side of the roof.

"Yo Genjer!" Mad Dawg said getting up, cracking his back. "You ready for this?"

"Indeed." Genji nodded.

"You have any idea what Mercy would want for Christmas?"

"No, I do not." Genji admitted defeated.

"Well that makes two of us." Mad Dawg declared. After a few moments of silence, he added. "Crap."

The duo stood on the roof, overlooking (or overWATCHING) the city, until Mad Dawg spoke up again.

"She's German right?"

"Swiss, actually." Genji corrected.

"Oh. My bad."

The two jumped onto the fire escape, and Genji then began sliding down the wall opposite the escape while Mad Dawg simply jumped over the side, then used a hook he had 'borrowed' from Road Hog to catch himself before he hit the ground.

"So…the Swiss are known for watches, chocolate and cheese." Mad Dawg stated, reading off of his phone. Looking up at Genji he added. "Never really thought of Miss Angela as a woman who would need a watch, or much cared for exotic cheese."

"Indeed." Genji nodded. "She does enjoy fine chocolate she-wait. Did you call her 'Miss Angela'?"

Mad Dawg froze and his eyes darted around, desperately trying to think of an answer.

"Nooo…." Was all he eventually said.

Genji looked at him but eventually didn't respond.

"Did you bring the clothes?" He asked.

"The what? Oh! Yeah!" Pulling his bag off his back, Mad Dawg dug for a moment then pulled out a trench coat, a hat, and a medical mask. "You sure you want to do this?"

"Yes." Was all Genji said. He sighed then slowly reached for his head, unlatching the mask he wore he slowly removed it and handed it to Mad Dawg. He in turn handed the medical mask back. Stringing it behind his ears, Genji sighed and pulled the mask over his mouth and nose. Then realized his eyes were still visible. Then noticed Mad Dawg was holding up a pair of sunglasses. Sighing, knowing he had no choice, he put them on. Mad Dawg stifled a laugh, and Genji looked at him confused. At this point, Mad Dawg burst out laughing. Genji seemed confused, but then saw that the glasses had a purplish tint to it. Taking the glasses off, he saw that Mad Dawg had given him bright pink sunglasses with sequins on them.

"Really?"

"Sorry. Wrong glasses." He replied as he handed Genji some black sunglasses.

The duo began walking down the street, Genji wearing a large trench coat and his face completely concealed, and Mad Dawg wearing a backpack with and a t-shirt and shorts. In December. He also had a chainsaw, a crossbow and Genji's swords in his bag. So, needless to say, neither one was… Normal.

 _Thanks asshat._

"Y'know man, we're just…a couple'a mismatched rejects in this crazy, crazy world." Mad Dawg commented aloud.

"As much as I wish it wasn't so, I feel I must agree with you." Genji replied.

"Still, is that an issue?" Mad Dawg asked, swinging around on a lamppost as they waited for the street light to change.

"You do have a point." Genji shrugged. "Perhaps at a time it may have been, but I have made peace with these oddities. In fact, now I believe they help myself and many others."

"Couldn't agree more."

As the light changed the two walked across the street, and as they went, Mad Dawg glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was on a rooftop. Having a feeling that Widowmaker proabably was out for revenge. Also, with a member of Talon appearing in the last chapter, there was a good chance someone else would appear in this one. And maybe… Just maybe…

 _ **HIS NAME IS JOHN CE-**_

 _Really dude?_

Sorry. That was too easy.

"You interest me _inu_." Genji suddenly said. "When you first arrived at the base, your fighting style seemed… odd. And you yourself seemed like a mixture of Junkrat and Tracer. Yet, you never ceased to intrigue me. You seemed unsure of your own talents yet you never seem to stop."

"Well, if we're playing the exposition game, I gotta admit seeing you for the first time was unexpected. I'd heard that medical studies have made huge improvements over the years, but seeing you was something I didn't expect it… No offense."

"None taken." Genji replied. "Doctor Ziegler was already an incredibly skilled doctor, and when she saved me, I think she realized it herself."

Looking at no one in particular, Mad Dawg whispered.

"Genji X Mercy fans, this one's for you!" Turning back, he asked. "How are you two doing anyway?"

"What-?" Genji suddenly said, seeming caught off guard. "I…I don't know what you're talking abou-"

"Ssssuuurrrreeeeeeeee…" Mad Dawg cut him off with a smug grin. "I know you like her."

"I-we-she-Well, if your going to play like that, what about you and Hana Song?"

"Whoa!" Mad Dawg said, holding his hands up. "Didn't mean to blow a circuit there bud! I was just joking!"

"Suurreee…" Genji returned with a similar tone.

"Laugh it up Jackie Bot. But everyone knows you've got your eye on her."

"Says who?" Genji retorted.

"Let's see…" Mad Dawg paused. "Mei, Symmetra, Tracer, Ana, Pharah, Symmetra, Hana, Winston, Reindhardt, McCree, Torbjorn, Junkrat, Orisa and of course…"

"Damn it…" Genji cursed under his breath, realizing who else had stabbed him in the back.

"Hanzo."

"I knew it!" Genji exclaimed in anger. "That no good back stabber! How did he find out!? I could understand Mei, or even Reindhardt…but HIM?! HE HAS _**CROSSED THE LINE!**_ "

"Genji. Chill man." Mad Dawg said, backing away slowly looking at him like the handful of people who herd his outburst. "I was joking."

Genji stopped and looked around at the people staring at him. Then realized what Mad Dawg had said.

"What." Was all he said, slowly looking back at the teenager.

"I was kidding man!" Mad Dawg tried to explain himself. "No one's said anything. I just got the idea off of how you two look at each other! Add to that the fact that she saved your life, and you two always seem happy when you're on missions with one another, and it's a no brainer! And who _cares_ if you love Angela?! You think I'm gonna judge you 'cause you like her? Hell no! I like her! I mean… not in the way _YOU_ do if what you just said is true… but dude. I lived in a Junkyard. I made videos of me eating glass just so I could eat some nights, I ain't in any position to judge you man. If you love her, that's great. If you don't. That sucks. Cause I have a pretty good feeling that she likes you."

Genji was about to respond when he suddenly tackled Mad Dawg to the ground. A shotgun blast barely missed the both of them.

"Hey man! If your mad you can just say something!" Mad Dawg yelled in annoyance.

"No you idiot. It's-"

"Hey! It's Edgy McEdgelord of Darkytown!" Mad Dawg exclaimed in a mocking tone when he saw Reaper appear in front of them.

"You." Reaper said with hate dripping in his edgy voice. "You've got a lotta nerve y'know. Vomiting on Widowmaker, breaking out of our base, making us look like fools."

"Hey, I ain't the one who dresses like a mix between Ryuk and a clansman!" Mad Dawg retorted. He growled in response and drew two new shotguns.

"You want your sword?" Mad Dawg quickly asked Genji.

"Yes." Genji quickly replied.

"Improvise!" He shouted. And without warning, kicked Genji off himself and into Reaper. This knocked them both down for a second, giving him a chance to open his bag and grab the weapons he needed. Genji rolled off of Reaper and caught his sword when MD threw it. Mad Dawg grabbed his crossbow and loaded it. Only for it to be shot out of his hands. Looking down in shock, he followed roughly where the bullet came from and saw Widowmaker. And she was **PISSED.**

"Aw, Crap." Mad Dawg sweat dropped. He skidded behind a newspaper box and Genji began deflecting Reaper's shells.

"Genji! Divide and Conquer!" Mad Dawg yelled. "You deal with the sniper, I'll deal with the Hot Topic addict!"

"And you insane!?" Genji yelled. "I'm not leaving you alone!"

Mad Dawg began priming his chainsaw. Grumbling at the fact that he _SHOULD_ get a batter powered chainsaw to save him some trouble, such as when he needed it on in a hurry, but gas was just cooler.

"Look man! If I can't hold off Reaper, then it gives you a chance to contact the others! Your faster! You have something to live for back at the base!"

"I'M NOT LEAVING YOU!" Genji shouted again, this time with more anger in his voice.

"Don't do it for me! Do it for Angela!" Mad dawg had a feeling this would get a response. And it did.

"Ryūjin no ken wo kurae!"

Knowing this was his chance, Mad Dawg yanked the chord and the chainsaw roared to life.

"It's Thomas the Tank Engine! Choo choo Mother F**ker!" He yelled as he Rushed at Reaper who was just recollecting himself after avoiding Genji's Dragonstrike. He turned and saw a chainsaw coming straight towards him, and despite shooting the problem multiple times, he didn't stop. Reaper shadow stepped to the side, but still received a cut along his side for being to slow. Mad Dawg skidded to a stop and spun around, blade whirring to life and people around them running in fear screaming.

"Ever seen Texas Chainsaw Massacre? Cause I'mma bout to go Leatherface on your ass!"

"Do you ever _**shut up**_ **?!"** Reaper growled, absolute hate in his voice. Why, oh WHY was one teenager so damn difficult to kill?! What was with him!?

Suddenly, Mad Dawg felt something draining from him, turning he saw a new woman with a mechanical arm firing a purple stream at him.

"Seriously?!" He yelled annoyed. "What kinda half-baked comic book villain hangout does Talon find you guys!?"

"That's enough out of you, child." The woman said in a tone which seemed to demand respect.

"Yeah? How about this?" Mad Dawg suddenly appeared behind the newcomer and punched hard. Smashing her in the back of the head, he suddenly appeared in front of her and delivered a strong uppercut to the jaw. He then appeared above her in the air and performed a bicycle kick and knocked her into the ground. Only to suddenly be shot in the back by Reaper, the shell obliterating part of his spinal column, momentarily making him immobile. The woman groaned and duster herself off.

"I had that under control." She stated.

"Sure you did." Reaper said annoyed. "He won't be down for long. Do what you gotta do."

"What?" The woman said surprised. "You shot him in the spine!"

"He heals. Really fast." Reaper replied. "So I'd hurry up."

"Impossible…" The woman muttered, watching as Mad Dawg's back began to repair itself. "It can't be…"

 _Mind if I call in a favor?_

It's been awhile, so yeah.

 _You know what to do._

Mad Dawg suddenly appeared above the woman and performed a Luchador style body slam onto her, forcing her back onto the ground.

"You talk too much." Mad dawg grinned.

"Just die already!" Reaper shouted, beginning to fire again. Scrambling away in a panic, Mad Dawg ran for the nearest store.

 _Present Time…_

"Yeet!" Mad Dawg exclaimed as he flipped the glass display in front of him into Reaper, the glass shattering. If Reaper hadn't fazed into wraith form, he would've been sliced apart.

Reaper, for his part. Was beyond furious. But now, Mad Dawg had no where to go. He was going to enjoy this. He raised a fist and drove it straight into Mad Dawg's face, blood spewing everywhere.

"Why."

 **WHAM!**

"Won't."

 **WHAM!**

"You."

 **WHAM!**

"Just."

 **WHAM!**

"DIE!"

 **WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!**

Over and over Reaper mercilessly beat Mad Dawg's face. He didn't care if he'd heal, right now, Reaper wanted one thing. To watch Mad Dawg suffer. Slamming him onto the ground, Reaper picked up his shot gun and fired it directly into Mad Dawg's gut. A painful cry rang out and Reaper fired again, and again. Mad Dawg was a bloody mess on the ground, his chest and gut blown open. Reaper watched as his heart struggled to keep beating, it was beginning to heal as he aimed his shotgun directly at Mad Dawg's slowing heart.

"I'll see you in hell." He growled.

 _ **SHULK!**_

A large silver and green sword suddenly entered Reaper's back and exited out his chest. Genji stood behind him, breathing heavily, he had ditched the trench coat and now stood in his mechanical armoured body. His armor scuffed and bloodied, but determination in his eyes.

"Back away from my friend." He growled.

Reaper began to slowly turn himself around, on the sword, until he faced Genji. While not many things could frighten Genji at this point in his life, this was one.

"You should have stayed dead." Was all he said.

Wham!

Reaper was suddenly his on the head with a large chunk of wood, then a rock. Turning they saw a crowd had gathered all brandishing debris or blunt objects.

"Leave the kid alone!" One demanded.

"You mess with him you mess with all of us!" Another shouted.

"Why don't you fight someone your own size asshole!" A third one added, picking up a brick.

Normally, Reaper would open fire in a situation like this, but when he tried to reach for his guns, he saw the knives Genji had jabbed into his arms, making him unable to lift his guns or fire.

"Run away." Genji said to Reaper. "Like the coward you are."

Reaper glared daggers at the cyber-ninja, then turned to smoke and disappeared quickly. Genji cleaned the remains off of his sword before dashing over to Mad Dawg, who despite his healing factor still partially working, was still badly wounded.

"Dude. Why'd you come back?" Mad Dawg groaned, trying to get up. "You should've gone for the others."

"That not what teamat-"Genji stopped himself. "That's not what friends do."

"Ah man. You're really going THERE?" Mad Dawg laughed weakly.

"Someone call an ambulance!" A member of the crowd shouted.

"Overwatch nearly got his kid killed!" Another shouted.

"I AM Overwatch you IDIOTS!" Mad Dawg suddenly yelled, fire in his voice. "Oh my spine, and neck, and chest and my everything. Man that hurt."

"You were shot several times point blank. Of course it would hurt." Genji replied.

Mad Dawg simply flipped him off before adding, "Oh good. My hand still works."

"Genji! Dawg!" A voice called. The crowd parted quickly as Solider 76 ran into the remains of the store. "What happened?"

"You missed it boss." Mad Dawg weakly. "Genji kicked all kindsa ass."

Dropping a biotic field, he and Genji attempted to set Mad Dawg up against a wall.

"Solider. Can you hear me?" He asked waving a hand in front of Mad Dawg's face. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"I was shot in the chest. Not the eye." Mad Dawg groaned.

"He's okay." Solider 76 nodded.

At this point, the crowd parted as more agents appeared and picked him up slowly to carry him out of the store, to try and keep more glass from getting imbedded in him.

"So good news is your gonna be okay, bad news is the ship won't be here for roughly another 20 minutes."

"Lean me up." Mad Dawg groaned. They seemed confused but eventually did. He looked out at the crowd then spoke.

"Sorry about your town." He began. "I didn't come here on a mission. I didn't know we were gonna be attacked. I'm sorry."

The crowd mumbled amongst themselves, before one stepped forward. "Kid. You were just shot! You think we're worried about a few broken windows? That freak was trying to kill you! He was…"

Mad Dawg began to everything blurry, he shifted for a few moments then his head grew heavy and he passed out. Hearing faintly "Kid!? KID!?"

 _Several hours later…_

"Lucio! He needs to rest!"

"Look Doc! Is he okay or not!?"

"He's got a point Mercy."

"Your not helping Jesse…"

Pushing past Mercy, McCree and Lucio entered the room where a bloodstained Mad Dawg was lying on a table. Tracer, Ana, Hana and Junkrat suddenly entered from the other room.

"Oi…He really got messed up…" Junkrat commented in shock.

"He's…he's gonna get back up right?" Hana asked, nervously. Mad dawg's heart rate was incredibly slow. His body was slowly healing, but it was slow. Lucio activated his sonic amplifier to heal and kicked it on. The soothing music began to play and Mad Dawg's healing factor seemed to speed up a little more. But he still didn't get up. Ana gently put her hand on Hana's shoulder, McCree pulled his hat off in respect, and Tracer's eyes watered.

" **AAAAGGGGHHHH!** " Mad Dawg suddenly screamed as he shot up on the table. "The waffle makers possessed!"

"He's alive!" Tracer exclaimed.

"And still not making sense!" McCree added. "Nothing's changed! Horary!"

"Where's Genji?" Mad Dawg said immediately.

"Whoa there." McCree said reassuringly. "He's good kid, but you nearly died."

"I owe him..I'm alive because of him." He said.

"He knows." Ana said, getting his attention. "As he was bringing you back, you told him you were thankful for what he did. He kept telling you not to talk but you wouldn't stop until you passed out again.

"Well. Thanks." Mad Dawg sighed.

"Get some rest young one." Ana said, resting her hand on his cheek. "Healing factor or no. If you try to leave, I WILL put you to sleep." She emphasized the last part with a smile.

"Cool." Mad Dawg nodded. Looking around he sighed. "Hey, guys? Thanks for everything." He said to the heroes around him, then flopped back down and dropped back to sleep.

 **A.N. Done! Okay, that ending is kinda rushed, but I need to wrap this up so we can move onto what I'm looking forward to! Ba-I mean The OverOffice Christmas Party! Tune in next time for The Spirit of Christmas Part V (A.K.A The Christmas special A.A.K.K.A.A The OverOffice Christmas Party!) If you have any ideas for what should happen at the party, let me know! I love reading your reviews, (currently all 7) and am having a lot of fun writing this! And in the new year, things are gonna get… Interesting.**


	15. The Spirit of Christmas Part V

Date: December 24th

Location: Unknown

Sombra was walking down the hall, mindlessly humming a tune to herself. She was probably the only member of Talon (aside from Hakim) who actually enjoyed Christmas. Amélie usually kept to herself and just drank some wine. Every time she tried to get Reaper into the holiday spirit he ignored her, Moira seemed to always be busy in her work, so Sombra just didn't bother with her. It was nearly midnight, and she had finally finished her rounds and was walking to her room. She'd probably watch some Christmas movie then go to sleep…

 _Thump thump thump_

She heard several loud noises on the roof, as if something was running across it. Looking up she saw a figure with large curved horns looking down through a window. Its face seemed to be frozen in a scream with a grey beard. It tilted its head and looked at her before running across the roof, she could make out a large red suit and a wicker basket on its back.

"Uhh…everyone?" She said, hacking into the P.A. system. "There's someone dressed up like Santa running across the roof." She paused when she clearly heard something break. "Scratch that, he's inside now."

Within a few moments, Reaper, Doomfist, Moria and Widowmaker were in the security room. Sombra tapped a few keys and cut to another camera, seeing the figure run down another hall.

"That's not Santa, that's Krampus." Moria pointed out.

"What?" Reaper asked.

"Krampus was an old European folk tale about a half-goat, half-demon creature. He is the opposite of Saint Nicholas, he goes around punishing the naughty instead of delivering presents."

"Ironic." Doomfist commented.

Suddenly, the twisted face appeared directly in front of one of the cameras.

"Ho ho ho." It said, then smashed the camera with a club, and the screen cut to static.

"Him." Reaper growled. Before anyone said anything, Reaper was gone, ready to fight.

"Should we do something?" Moria asked.

"It's Christmas." Sombra smiled. "Let him have this."

"Maybe so, but after what happened last time, you go with him." Doomfist ordered.

Reaper kicked through the doors, guns drawn, ready to blow holes in the intruder's head. He saw the costumed figure standing in the middle of the room. It looked at him and pointed.

"Naughty." He said.

"Stay DEAD this time." Reaper growled.

Splat!

Reaper was momentarily blinded when a large snowball hit him directly in the face, he was forced to drop one of his guns to wipe the snow off of his face. While he was doing this, the figure dropped a bag and clicked a button and was suddenly yanked up by a rope up to the ceiling and disappeared through the hole he came in.

"Feleiz Navidad!" Sombra called, walking in.

"Really?" Reaper said, looking at her.

"What?" She said with a smile.

"I really hate that kid." Reaper scowled.

"What reason would he have for coming here?" Moria asked, looking up at the winch he used to escape. Wondering how he had installed it and how he broke through the roof. Sombra meanwhile, walked over to the bag and opened it seeing what was inside made her smile widen.

"I know why." She said picking something up.

"No." Reaper groaned face palming.

"It says 'To the one I vomited on. Sorry about that'." She paused and looked up at the others.

"Which one of is that?"

"He broke in here… To deliver presents?" Doomfist said, stupefied by the turnout of tonight's events. He expected an attack, but the agent who had caused so much trouble in the past was now… Delivering presents.

"Why not? It's Christmas." Sombra smiled.

"I think it'd have to do with the multiple attempts we've made on his worthless life." Reaper said stalely. "I can't think of any reason why he'd do this."

Sombra picked up a small recording device and with 'Play me' written on it. Shrugging, she hit the play button and after a few moments of static, two voices could be heard.

"Really Dawg? Them?" A familiar southern accented voice said annoyed.

"What? It's that time of the year man!" Mad Dawg's voice retorted still seeming happy.

"They've tried to kill you how many times? Not to mention how many people they've killed in the past. They're not good people."

"Yeah well neither were you." Mad Dawg's annoyed response came. "Oh, don't give me that look! You were as screwed up as any of them! The only difference was you found someone who gave a crap about you enough to tell you that you mattered! Besides. To me Christmas is a clean slate. This time of the year, it's about people you care for and that care for you. Is it REALLY so wrong to take a day or two off of a jaded past just to say merry freakin' Christmas to someone you don't like? You don't have to agree with me Cree. But this is what I think this holiday is all about*."

"Huh." The other voice paused. "Y'know. I think you've got a point. Maybe…maybe your right on this one…And if so, well, that's a first."

"Oh, suck my snow balls Scrooge. Also, where's that mask I had a minute ago?"

The static returned and the recording stopped.

'Maybe he does have a point.' Doomfist thought.

"So, which one of you did he throw up on? I wanna hear this story." Sombra smirked. After a few moments of silence, Widowmaker stepped forward.

"His body reacted to my toxins. He regurgitated them to expel it from his system. We will never speak of this again." She said coldly. Not fully knowing why, Widowmaker opened the wrapping paper to see what she had received, and was surprised to see a bottle of Bourgogne Pinot Noir. She remembered having this years ago and thoroughly enjoying it, but it was nearly impossible to find.

"How.." Was all she could say in confusion.

Pulling out another wrapped item, it read 'Mad Scientist', with a smile she handed it to Moria, with a slight sigh, Moria opened it because she felt like Sombra wouldn't stop bugging her about it. She unwrapped it and found a book titled 'Encyclopedia of Chemical Forms'. There was something at the bottom with a large chain sticking out. Doomfist yanked the chain and a large punching bag was attached to the chain, with an image of Mad Dawg on it with 'Hit Me' written on it. Akande couldn't help but smirk slightly, Sombra found one with 'Hack3R Ch1c5' written on the tag. Opening it she found a box of pastries and an empty hard drive with her logo engraved into it. Finally, she found a long box with 'G. Rayes' on the tag. Her eyes widened when she saw the name before handing it to Reaper. At first, he refused until he saw the tag, he snatched it from her hands at first in anger, then opened it. Inside were two long white shotguns, they seemed to have a designed carved on the sides of them and seemed hand-painted. Reaper… Didn't know how to respond. Looking up one last time, Sombra gave a small wave when she saw the Krampus looking back down before running off.

Once he was a god distance away, Krampus stopped and sat down on a park bench, he pulled his head off and Mad Dawg breathed a sigh of relief. He cracked open a Mountain Dew and took a long drink. He smiled to himself and checked his phone.

 _1:37 AM December 25_ _th_ _… Merry Christmas._ He thought. He walked behind a tree and appeared at his secret base. Stripping the Krampus costume off, he pulled on a pair of track shorts and a t-shirt, stretching his joints and shoulder he walked over to the fridge and grabbed the remains of a sandwich. Scarfing it down, he left his hideout and found himself in his room in the Gibraltar base. He flopped down on his bed and fell asleep, looking forward to the day to come.

 _That Morning…_

Mad Dawg dragged himself up and left his room, looking around the hall, it was dead quiet. No one seemed to be awake, or here. Walking through the base he went to the kitchen and got some frozen waffles. On the box there was a note.

 _Mad Dawg;_

 _You were asleep this morning, so we decided to let you sleep, we'll be back tonight around 6 for the party. Merry Christmas love!_

 _-Tracer_

"So… It's just me…" Mad Dawg said aloud.

"Bwee."

Turning around, Mad Dawg saw the Bastion unite from a few chapters ago, this time, instead of freaking out, Mad Dawg slowly approached it.

" …" He said nervously.

"Doo woop." The unit beeped and waved.

"Is it just you and me?"

The Bastion unit looked around then shrugged.

"Huh. Well…" Mad Dawg paused, thinking about what he was going to do. "Wanna watch a movie?"

"Beep bop!" Bastion said in reply with a nod.

"Okay. We're just two dudes… Hangin' out watching a Christmas movie…" Mad Dawg breathed, beginning to feel a little more comfortable around the Bastion Unit.

The two walked into the rec room and Mad Dawg pulled up a streaming site and began going through the list of movies.

"You ever seen _Die Hard_ before?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Woooooo." Bastion replied. Mad Dawg took that as a 'No'. And probably for the first time, smiled at an Omnic.

"I think you'll like it." He said, before looking at someone (you know who you are) "It's a good _CHRISTMAS_ movie."

 _One viewing of Die Hard later…_

"And that was Die Hard." Mad Dawg stated.

"Beep, booop beee woo." The Bastion unit replied.

"So… I take it you understand what I'm saying right?" Mad Dawg began awkwardly.

"Beeple."

"Listen man… I wanna apologize for what happened a few days ago. I had no idea you weren't like the oth-Wow that came out wrong." He paused for a moment, trying to figure out the best way of phrasing what he wanted to say. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak out at you earlier. I guess I should stop living in the past."

Bastion looked at him then held out his robotic hand, then made a fist and held it up to Mad Dawg. He paused for a moment, then Mad Dawg smiled and fist-bumped Bastion.

"Beddle leddle leddle le." Bastion chirped.

"Agh..Now what man? It's still _hours_ till the OverOffice Party… What'cha wanna do?"

"Beep?"

"Ping pong? Okay! You're on."

Twenty mints later, Bastion and Mad Dawg were in the middle of a heated ping pong tournament. Mad Dawg was down two points and they had bet money on this, although, Mad Dawg had no idea where Bastion got the money or why he needed it. But he didn't care. Five bucks were on the line, and THAT'S what mattered. Meanwhile, Winston had returned to the base and was pleasantly surprised to see the operative who nearly had a heart attack upon seeing the Bastion unit now playing ping pong with it.

"Woop woop!" Bastion said, raising its arms up in the air.

"Damn it! Well, you just made five bucks. Agh..Now what?"

"Doo woooo?"

"What? Beer Bongs? How the hell would that work?"

"Doo woo."

"Oh! Cards, okay. Not sure how I got beer bongs form that…" As the duo walked over to the table, Mad Dawg glanced over and called out. "Yo Winston! You want in?"

"Sure. Why not?"

After a few rounds of poker, the group split up and went to do their own things. Mad Dawg returned to his pad to make sure the gifts were ready. Sitting down after finishing, he was left wondering what to do, he decided to do something stupid. He jumped on one of the computers he had and went onto one of the forums for D. Va's gaming community and type three words.

D. Va uses aimbot. #NoSkill

He waited for a few moments, then laughed as hundreds of butt hurt fans began furiously sending threats at Mad Dawg. He closed the laptop and dropped it into a garbage can and dumped some kerosene onto it and tossed a match over his shoulder and set it ablaze.

 _That night…_

"Phew…Okay." Mad Dawg breathed nervously at the door. "You got this, they're your friends. Don't worry. It's just a few hours…And if worse comes to worse, find Torbjörn, Reindhardt, and McCree and get **_WASTED_**." Walking through the door he walked the halls heading towards the Main Hall.

"Mad Dawg!" Junkrat exclaimed, appearing from somewhere and slapping him on his back. "You made it!"

"Yes! I did!" He exclaimed. "Where's the party at?"

"Through… HERE!" Junkrat exclaimed suddenly putting a sack over Mad Dawg's head as several others agents appeared and restrained him.

"Season's Greetings Dawg!" He heard McCree's voice.

"Don't struggle. This is gonna be FUN!" He heard Reinhardt's voice.

Mad Dawg struggled as he was being dragged somewhere he was forced into a chair and the bag was yanked off his head. Looking around the entire room was dark, aside from one searchlight above him. He wasn't restrained to the chair but had a feeling that moving would proabably get him shot by Ana. Or Tracer. Hell, he'd proabably be shot regardless, but prolonging the inevitable seemed better.

"Mad Dawg." He heard Solider 76's voice come from somewhere. "Welcome to the Christmas Party." Suddenly, a bucket of Egg Nog was poured on him, soaking him completely in Nog. Lucio suddenly popped up behind a turntable. "LET'S PARTY!" He immediately dropped the base as the lights came up and the other agents laughed and cheered.

"Welcome to the party!" Tracer laughed.

"Agh..Was that necessary?" Mad Dawg laughed, wiping Egg Nog off himself.

"Yes. Very." Genji stated, handing him a towel.

"Why?"

"Because this was funny as hell." McCree laughed.

"Yup!"

"Merry Christmas Doggy!" Tracer exclaimed, appearing and hugging him, Mad Dawg returned the hug and lifted her off the ground.

"Now…Where's the _dwarfgineer?"_ He said with a coy smile,

"MAD DAWG! IF THAT ISN'T A CHALLENGE TO AN EGG NOG DRINKING CONTEST, YOU'D BETTER RUN!" He heard an angry Swedish voice yell from the other side of the room. Cracking his neck, Mad Dawg slid over to the table where McCree and Reindhardt were with Torbjörn were. A carton of eggnog slid down to him and he opened it, poured it into a large mug, and then added a copious amount of whiskey.

"Three." McCree began.

"Two." Mad Dawg continued.

"One." Torbjörn added.

"GO!"

The four began aggressively chugging the nog, it burned like Roadhog's chili but Mad Dawg was too stubboirn to give up after just a taste. At this point, several heroes had come to watch and were cheering them on. Reindhardt finished first, then Dawg, then McCree, then Torb.

"Had enough boy?" Reindhardt taunted.

"Blrgh..Nope!" Mad Dawg coughed, feeling slightly off but still opening the second carton. The four continued at this for more than a dozen more cartons. Torb was swaying around staring at a specific ceiling tile and calling to it like an animal, McCree was trying to straighten his mind, his face red as the sun, Mad Dawg was sipping some water, his healing factor helping but still leaving him rather drunk. Reindhardt however, was totally fine. Mercy had taken a break from her conversation with Jack to come over and apply some help with her staff. The three were now sobering and Mad Dawg hung his head in defeat.

"Alright, you win."

"Hah! You thought you could stand a chance against me?!" Reindhardt laughed victoriously, completely unfazed. ''That was your mistake rookie!"

"Yeah, yeah, I learned my lesson."

"Is this real life?" Torbjörn slurred.

"It's high….midnight." McCree stood up, pointed a finger gun into the sky and immediately fell over and began snoring loudly.

 _They'll be fine._ Mad Dawg thought, walking over to the side of the dance floor, he laughed as Junkrat was attempting to break dance, Hana was dancing surprisingly well, and even Bastion was doing the robot dance.

 _Should I?_

Do it!

 _Really?_

DO IT!

Laughing to himself, Mad Dawg walked onto the floor and went next to Bastion and began preforming the robot dance as well. The two stepped to the left then t the right, the clapped and began turning left, right, looking up and then down before continuing the dance.

"Yeah Doggy!" He heard Lucio yelled from the turntable. "Break it DOWN!"

Mad Dawg spent the rest of the night dancing with the agents, chomping on cake and pizza with Roadhog, arm wrestling with Zarya, trying to figure out how to be a Dj with Lucio. He enjoyed sine coffee with Ana, Solider and Hanzo, talking with them about holidays long since past. Hell, he even patched things up somewhat with Symmetra. She had been keeping to herself, so he appeared above her hanging off a railing.

"Y'know the idea of a party is to have a good time." He stated.

"True, but parties are to chaotic. There's no order." She replied, not the least bit surprised by his sudden appearance, but wasn't in any mood to talk with him.

"Man. There's that word again. Order. You really love that idea, don't you? You want to think the whole world has order, we all think the same way, act the same way, well guess what? When that happens, we don't have freedom. We have slavery."

"Possibly, but look at yourself." She stated, turning to face him, her face not showing much other than the usual annoyance she had when he was near. "You live with freedom, and without order. Because of that, how many people have you hurt?"

"More than I wanted to sure, but Talon thinks the same way you do. They're terrorists, that's their reason. What's your reason?"

"Is that always your answer!?" She suddenly snapped in anger. "Blaming Talon?! If you need a _REASON._ My _REASON_ is I care for people! And if maybe not being the most 'lose' leader means protecting people from being hurt or killed, then I'm sorry if your twisted, drug-filled mind can't understand this, I'm fine with it! Did your parents never explain the idea of sacrificing the finger to save the hand?"

Mad Dawg was genuinely taken aback, his face didn't show the normal energy it did. In fact, he seemed hurt. "I never had parents." He said. He thought he heard Symmetra give a slight gasp, but maybe he was hearing things again. "I lived my whole life on streets and in a train yard. I'm sorry if I upset you. I was just trying to get you to join in the fun a little. I…I'll leave you alone." He dropped t the ground and began to walk away, but Symmetra grit her teeth somewhat and grabbed his hand.

"I'm sorry." She said. "I didn't mean to bring that up."

"Don't." Mad Dawg shook his head. "I was being an asshole, I wanted to try and get you to join the party, but I felt like making fun of you, I'm sorry."

The two went silent, neither one knowing how to continue this conversation or if they even should.

"I'm gonna be honest." Mad Dawg finally spoke. "When I joined Overwatch, it was mostly t repay them saving my ass. But even though I don't like people trying to tell me how to live my life, there's something about it that's… Reliable."

"Really?" Symmetra asked, now curious.

"Yeah, it's like, if I screw up, it's not entirely my fault. I was just following the rules…"

"True, true." Symmetra nodded.

"I feel like I should just do this, but I'm sorry. For all the crap I said about you or what you stand for, if it's okay, I want for us to kinda start over next year. Forget what's happened in the past, and try again."

Symmetra smiled and nodded.

"Agreed." She said.

"Oh, hey. Junkie's waiting for you." He said, pointing to Junkrat holding a mistletoe above him and raising his eyebrows.

"Actually, I think he's waiting for you." She replied.

"Really?! Awesome!" Mad Dawg exclaimed rubbing his hands together. "See you later!"

Symmetra couldn't help but laugh as she watched Mad Dawg run towards Junkrat, whose eyes widened and ran off as Mad Dawg chased after him.

"HALP!" Junkrat shouted. "I'M BEING ASSULTED BY A MINOR!"

Everyone turned and watched (and quite a few laughed) as a young teenager chased after a Junker.

Later that night, it was time for the gift exchange. The agents had all gathered around where the tree was and Winston picked up a random gift.

"To Angela from Lena." He read the tag before passing the gift over to the doctor. She smiled and opened it and picked up a golden scarf.

"Oh, it's wonderful Lena! Thank you!" She smiled.

This continued for awhile, Torbjörn had built a new helmet for Reindhardt, Ana had knit a new poncho for McCree, but eventually Winston picked up one of Dawg's.

"To Lucio from Mad Dawg."

Lucio raised a brow and Mad Dawg grinned widely in anticipation. Lucio looked at the long gift and the smaller one on top of it, He opened the smaller gift ant went silent as he looked art the stuffed frog he was holding, it seemed like it had seen better days but it was also recently repaired.

"Where'd you find this?" He asked quietly.

"Well, remember how Torb built that jetpack wingsuit?" Mad Dawg began. "Well, I was flying through Rio and I accidently crashed into an abandoned house… Turns out it was yours. I found it in your old room."

"Th..thanks man…" He said, tears beginning to door in his eyes. He set it down and tore the paper off the other gift and the tears were immediately replaced with laughter. "No Dawg! You didn't!" He held up a goalie stick painted green and purple with his logo on it. "I love it!"

"You and me. We're playing hockey this holiday break!" Mad Dawg stated. "As soon as I learn HOW to play hockey."

"Alright you two. Settle down." Pharrah said, cutting in between the two.

"This is for you." Mad Dawg said, trying to distract her, holding up a small box. She raised a brow at him then took it and opened it and raised her brows in shock. In the box was a necklace with several diamonds embedded in it.

"It's beautiful!" She said. "Thank you Maddie!" She said.

"Gonna give you a heads up, you may want to use a little air freshener on it before you wear it. It came from the store Gabe re-decorated with my intestines, so it may smell a little funky still." Mad Dawg said awkwardly.

As the night continued, Winston received a lot of Peanut Butter (which he was totally okay with.) Mad Dawg gave Hana a giant World of Warcraft statue, Zarya and Reindhardt exchanged weights, Roadhog gave Tracer and Emily a new tv, which he promised wasn't stolen, (It wasn't stolen by HIM per say…). To Hanzo, Mad Dawg had gotten Torb to help make a set of arrows he painted dragons on, he had gave Solider 76 some fishing gear (as Ana had told him he rather enjoyed fishing on his days off) and so on When it was all said and done, Mad Dawg turned to Emily and Lena and smirked.

"I got one more gift. For you two." He said. "I know living with an agent as your girlfriend can be stressful, hoping she'll return alive and…" He trailed off as he realized he had NO idea where he was going. "Huh. I really screwed that up." He admitted. "This is a bad way to start this… Look, my point is, I got something to help." He got up and left the room then returned with a basket with a blanket over it. He set it down in front of them and the women looked at each other. Then down at the basket. Emily slowly reached for it and lifted up the blanket then squealed in delight.

"IT'S SO CUTE!" She exclaimed as Axle poked his head out and looked around as if to say 'What's this new place?' she scooped the puppy up and it licked her face happily. "What's her name?!"

"Wait, it's a girl?" Mad Dawg said confused. "I couldn't tell. Anyhow, I called her Axel… Also I thought it was a boy." Tracer and Emily were now happily petting the puppy as it let out a happy bark and leaned into the affection. "It also hates Talon." After saying that it got the entire group to turn in confusion.

"What?" Someone asked.

"Yeah…didn't really wanna talk about this, but I had a run in with Widowmaker in King's Row. She really messed me up. Then this mutt appeared out of nowhere and viciously attacked."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Winston asked.

"Probably because I was laughing to hard at her trying to deal with a puppy biting her ankle. You have NO idea how funny it was! The mutt was on her and wasn't letting go! It was great!"

"But your alright?" Ana asked.

"Yeah, got shot a few times, poisioned slightly, nothing I couldn't handle."

"You know you could've called for help."

"Eh, live and learn." Mad Dawg shrugged. "Besides, I dodn't want you guys distracted from getting ready to spend time with your families." Upon saying that, several agents felt a twang of guilt, but also knew Mad Dawg didn't intend to cause that, he proabably didn't realize what he had somewhat implied by accident.

"Do you like the name Scout?" Emily asked Lena, deciding to change the subject as she scratched the puppy's ears.

"I think it's a great name!" Lena beamed. Setting Scout down, the puppy began wandering around walking over to other agents in curiosity. Mei and Hana absolutely loved Scout immediately, even Reindhardt patted its head. As the agents talked and began cleaning up, Mad Dawg silently got up and left the room, heading out to a balcony, he sat on it and swung his legs over it. Quietly taking in the night sky.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

Solider 76 walked up and leaned against the railing, looking out over the dark horizon calmly.

"Yeah, it is." Mad Dawg nodded. "It seems, well, peaceful."

"That can sometimes be the best thing we can ask for, what with the lives we live." Solider 76 replied. "Taking the times when we can stop and relax makes them that much more valuable."

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. I've wanted to say this for a while, but thank you. You guys found me when I needed help, you guys could've cut me loose when you were done patching me up, but you gave me a place to stay, a job which lets me feel like I'm doing something good for a change. So, thank you, all of you."

"Since you've gotten here, things have gotten livelier. I honestly didn't think you'd last that long here. Either you'd leave because it was too much…" His voice tailed off, But Mad Dawg knew exactly what he meant. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"It's fine!" Mad Dawg laughed. "A lot of people –myself included- don't understand my healing factor. But it works!"

"Yeah. I guess what I'm trying to say is it's good to have you here Dawg."

Then, for no real logical reason (Morrison knew his healing factor worked, and all it would do would cause him a lot of pain but hey, he's doing it anyways.) Mad Dawg pushed himself off the ledge and fell several dozen stories to the cliff ground below, but as he fell to the ground he yelled out in fright:

"Merry Christmas to all! Holy F***kin' s**t this wasn't too bright!"

 **A.N. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and have an AWESOME New Year! I'm sorry this is a day or two late, and the ending is kinda rushed, but I hope you enjoyed reading and spending Christmas with Mad dawg and the Overwatch Crew! And I hope you all spend time with the ones you love this holiday season. Come back next year when things are going to get interesting… Histories will be revealed, bonds will be built and broken, and the Overwatch Heroes are gonna find out that sometimes Bad Blood will never truly go away.**


	16. Too Far?

"HOLY CRAP!"

McCree combat rolled out of the way as Junkrat was thrown through several boxes just to the left of him. He kept low trying to avoid the scrap being shot his way. Suddenly, several crossbow bolts punctured the box in front of him and he dropped low and froze. The entire room went dead silent, no one's breath could be heard. Then McCree felt a large hook latch onto his poncho and he was dragged across the ground aggressively. Looking up he saw Mad Dawg and Roadhog fist bump fists before Mad Dawg took his chainsaw off his back.

"So… Jess." Mad Dawg began, his face in a demented grin and his voice nit hiding the malice in it. "Are you going to ever call me or Roadhog… that word again?"

"N..no." McCree breathed, his voice hitched as he attempted to reply.

"Call. Us. What?" Roadhog said in his deep voice.

"No! Mickey! It's a trap!" Junkrat yelled in fear.

"I won't call you two fat." McCree said.

Mad Dawg and Roadhog went very, very quiet. Mad Dawg's eyes seeming to grow and Roadhog's hand cracking as he made a fist. The two seemed like a pair of large angered beats as they loomed over McCree.

"What." Mad Dawg began.

"Did you." Roadhog added.

"Just call us?"

Meanwhile, Ana and Mercy were watching the simulation from outside. Both seemed surprised by what was currently happening to McCree's virtual form.

"I think it's safe to say Jesse is rather happy this isn't in real life." Ana commented, a small smile on her face.

"I'd say so." Mercy nodded. "I see why they call him 'Mad Dawg' now, up until now I honestly assumed it was a joke of sorts."

A few moments later, Roadhog, McCree, Junkrat and Mad Dawg left the simulation room laughing.

"Well, I hope you've learned the danger's of callin' my friend fat now, Cree. I hope you learned." Junkrat stated.

"Welp, I'm gonna go workout some more." Mad Dawg said. "That may have been virtual, but my heart is jackhammering like a frat boy on prom night."

Ew.

 _You wrote that._

No I didn't. It's a reference to the awesome tv show Ash vs. Evil Dead. Speaking of which, if your reading this, there's a petition to keep the show going after it's third (and supposedly) final season. It's one of the few good things left on tv, so please show your support.

"Uhhh… What's he looking at?" McCree whispered to Junkrat as they watched Mad Dawg looking up at the ceiling. "I've seen him do this like two dozen times. Any idea what it's about?"

"I think he's losing it." Junkrat whispered back.

Mad Dawg began walking to the gym, knocking back some of a flask he stole from McCree, feeling the burn in his throat he sighed in relief.

"Mad Dawg!"

Turning he saw D. Va waving him down.

"Hey."

"We need you." She said suddenly, grabbing his arm, pulling him towards another room. "We've got a Talon agent who won't talk. We need someone to scare the information outta him!"

"What? But-I-Smoothie-" He said trying to pull away. Hana shoved him into another room where Winston and Tracer were looking at Solider through a two one way mirror. 76 was talking to a man in chains. He was in tattered clothes and markings. He (for some reason) seemed like someone related to Ana.

"Ah, Mad Dawg!" Winston said noticing the young hero. "You're here!"

"Yeah… What do you need?" Mad Dawg frowned. "I was gonna get a smoothie and work out."

"This is Hakim." Winston stated, motioning to the aforementioned man. "He works with Talon, recently he was captured by Zarya and some of the other agents. He has crucial information concerning Talon and a supposed super weapon. He and 76 have a history… So Jack hasn't been able to get anything out of him. We were hoping you'd be able get the information out of him."

"Lethal or non-lethal?" Mad Dawg automatically asked.

"Non-lethal!" Tracer exclaimed, shocked by the answer.

"Got it." Mad Dawg said picking up his chainsaw. "Gimmie five minutes, then tell Solider to use the 'B' routine."

Tracer looked to Winston with a nervous expression, as if asking him to say no, but Winston looked at Mad Dawg with an intrigued grin and nodded.

"You can't physically harm him." Winston stated.

"So? I can scare him all the same." Mad Dawg said walking off, his tone giving a mischievous air to it. The doors closed and Winston sent the message to Solider 76.

"Are…are you sure about this?" Tracer asked nervously.

Winston sighed, re-adjusting his glasses.

"No." He honestly answered. "Mercy's reports recently have said he's become more aggressive. Possibly it was stress related to the missions, or maybe there's something else. Then again, we've all had rough patches. Remember some of Farrah's early days?"

"True. I guess." Tracer nodded.

"I'm never seen this whole routine, I will say, I'm intrigued as to what'll happen…"

 _A few minutes later…_

"Damn it Hakim." Solider 76 frowned. "You're making this harder than it has to be."

Hakim laughed, despite being in restraints, he knew Overwatch wouldn't get anything from him. Suddenly, there was a loud banging on the door. Soldier's eyes widened and he seemed to pale.

"Shit." He breathed. "What did you do Winston?"

"What?" Hakim asked, losing his smug attitude, now curious as to what spooked Solider 76.

"Butcher…" Was all 76 said under his breath.

"Whoa, what?" Hakim asked. 'Butcher' wasn't a name he had heard before. It wasn't a code for Reaper or Doomfist. So unless some outsider was hired, this was someone else.

"He's a psychopathic killer we detained five years ago. His body count was over seven hundred."

"Bullshit." Hakim rolled his eyes. "I ain't ever heard of him."

"Yeah? He was based on Louisiana." Solider 76 stated then thought: _Mad Dawg. This better work, or your ass is on bathroom janitorial duties for the next year._ "He'd kill and skin anyone who he found. We only found out he was even alive because of a survivor, his face was peeled off and was on the edge of death. We lost seventeen agents taking him down just to restrain him. Winston said he was going to be performing repairs on his restraints. The idiot must've forgot to subdue him."

A muffled alarm could be heard outside, and faintly they could hear "All agents! Report! The bu..has…led sever.."

Hakim laughed loudly at that.

"Well, your all dead." He grinned.

Solider turned and answered his earpiece, then ran out the door, leaving it open. Hakim listened intently then heard something slam against metal and Solider 76 yell in pain. Then it went silent. Then there was a deep, raspy breathing. Hakim froze, realizing whatever was outside was coming towards him.

"Hey! Are you the Butcher?" He called. "Get me outta here! Talon can repay you!"

There was the sound of chains clanking and something shuffling. A hulking beast walked into the room. Hakim was surprised, he wasn't as tall as he expected, then he saw the Wolf skull he was wearing as a mask. He couldn't see his real face, as the skull seemed to be drooling…fire? He wore a torn prison outfit and a blood-stained apron. His body was covered in cuts, burns, and blood. He was dragging a blood-soaked chainsaw and dropped a bag full of… something which Hakim didn't want to think about. He was pretty sure that if it was Reaper or Doomfist tied here, they'd be freaked out too.

"Who. Are. You?" The Butcher said in a deep voice.

"I'm…I'm Hakim." Hakim stammered.

"You, Talon?"

"Ye..yeah! Cut me outta here and help me get out of here. They can pay you!"

The Butcher growled and its eyes seemed to narrow. It took a few steps towards Hakim, and he could tell. It. Wasn't. Friendly.

"Talon. Took. My. Family." He snarled. "I've been trying to find them. I've found pretty women and others who are my family. But they scream, they run. I have to do something, otherwise I'll lose my family. The one Talon took from me." He suddenly picked up his chainsaw and revved it. "WHERE ARE THEY!" He screamed.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Hakim screamed in fear.

The blade was whirring incredibly fast and was inches from his chest. Hakim could only hear two things, his heartbeat (which was going berserk) and the chainsaw blade.

"YOUR LYING!" The Butcher screamed.

"I'M NOT!" Hakim screamed in terror.

"YES! YOU! ARE!" The Butcher shouted, raising his chainsaw above his head and bringing it down towards one of Hakim's legs.

"THEY'RE IN COLORADO!" Hakim screamed, realizing what he had just did would most likely be his death if they found out.

"WHY?" The Butcher demanded.

"Why the hell do you care?!" He screeched.

"TELL ME OR YOUR BALLS ARE MINE!" Butcher yelled.

"Okay! Okay!" Hakim shouted. "Talon is working on a weapon powerful enough to destroy an entire city!"

The chainsaw stopped, Hakim opened his eyes and he saw The Butcher walking away.

"Thanks man!" The butcher said in a drastically different voice. Walking back to where the heroes were and he pulled the mask off. "Thanks Hanzo." He said handing the mask back.

"That. Was f**king. _**AMAZING.**_ " McCree stated.

"Did we get everything we needed?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Yes." Winston nodded.

"Did I do anything wrong?"

"No."

"Awesome. I'm going to go drink in the shower. Bye."

"That kid has serious issues." Junkrat said.

"I'm nervous about him…" Ana added. "He's unpredictable. He's different then when we first met."

"Or maybe he likes acting like a psycho." Solider 76 replied flatly. "He didn't hurt Hakim, he followed orders."

"His name is Mad Dawg. Remember that." Winston said.

"Did the results say anything?" Mercy asked, causing Winston to sigh.

"No." He shook his head. "We couldn't find anything about his family. I hate to say it, but I think we need to assume he has no family."

"Damn." Solider 76 commented. "Who's gonna tell him?" The heroes looked around from one to another, trying to figure out who would be the bearer of bad news.

"I will." Ana nodded. Before following Mad Dawg to where he went.

Mad Dawg stared at the blender mixing his smoothie up, waiting for it to finish.

"Mad Dawg, dear?" He heard Ana's voice.

"Miss Amari? He said turning around, when he saw her, his face fell somewhat. "I screwed up didn't I?"

"No my child-" She began, but Mad Dawg cut her off.

"I got carried away." He sighed. "I guess I was trying to do the job… but I never thought about what that meant, I have no real sense of control. I guess I was never taught what that meant…"

Ana walked up and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Please sit down love." She said, her voice having a tone saying that she needed to tell her something important. He gave her a confused look and sat down.

"Mercy and Winston received the results of your blood test." She began, Mad Dawg's face seemed to light up briefly then noticed the look on her face. "Nothing came up."

Mad Dawg sighed and lowered his head.

"I get it." He nodded. "I'm alone."

Without a second thought, Ana hugged him close and tried to calm him.

"No. You have us." She whispered.

"Thanks…" Mad Dawg quietly replied.

 _Meanwhile…_

A man sat on his chair, watching the feeds showing security footage, his eyes narrowed when he saw Mad Dawg and he grinned wickedly.

"Soon…" He whispered. "Your life ends…"

 **A.N. Next Time… Bad Blood.**


	17. Bad Blood Part I

**A.N. Hey, quick note. Before you read this story, it is recommended you read at least the first three chapters of the story. You're not required to know everything about the story. But at this point, it would help if you knew a little bit about the character.**

Mad Dawg felt like crap.

Three days had passed since he had scared Hakim, and since Ana had given him the bad news. Since then, Mad Dawg seemed distant. He didn't talk as much, during his mission, he seemed extra aggressive (nearly caving a Talon agent's skull in), but he still laughed occasionally… So it wasn't clear what was wrong. Mercy ultimately determined that considering the shocking news he received, his attitude adjustment made sense. Anyhow, he was supposed to be on a mission today, but swapped shifts with Zenyatta. Surprisingly, the two hit it off pretty well despite Mad Dawg having a (somewhat) fear of Omnics.

 _Sometime before now that's unspecified because the author lost track of continuity. Wait. Why am I making fun of myself? Whatever._

After finishing a blender full of smoothie and soda, Mad Dawg cracked his neck as he walked into the next room where an Omnic wearing pants was floating while practicing yoga.

"Greetings." The Omnic nodded.

"Hey." Mad Dawg replied.

Walking by he suddenly froze and took a few steps backwards as he realized something.

There was an Omnic wearing pants who was floating while practicing yoga.

"Umm…" He said before trialing off realizing he had no idea what to say.

"Greetings young one." The Omnic said, turning to face him.

"How the hell can you float like that?"

"I've never truly understood that myself." The Omnic said. "There has been many speculations, what do you believe?" He asked, turning around to face Mad Dawg.

"Uhh… I'd guess butt magnets." Mad Dawg shrugged, replying honestly. "Or your constantly silently farting."

The Omnic laughed at Mad Dawgs response.

"No, I do not believe that is the way it works." He laughed.

"Not sure we met. I'm Mad Dawg." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Greetings, I am Zenyatta." Zenyatta introduced himself.

"I think I've heard of you." Mad Dawg said, thinking back to some of the files he read when he first joined. "Your one of the Omnic Monks aren't you?"

"Indeed." Zenyatta nodded.

"Yeah, yeah! Genji talked about you."

"Yes, I was his mentor in Nepal." Zenyatta began. "He traveled to the mountains searching peace, I taught him how to control his inner-self thoughts."

"Through yoga?" Mad Dawg asked, not really understanding how it works.

"Not entirely." Zenyatta said. "Sometimes, one has to look inwards in order to see the world around them."

"…You just lost me." Mad Dawg shrugged, not having any idea what the monk was trying to say.

"Well, allow me to try and explain." Zenyatta said, floating over to Mad Dawg.

For the next several hours, Mad Dawg and Zenyatta practiced meditation and self-reflection, it took MD about an hour before he began to get into it, but then something inside seemed to click, and Mad Dawg felt incredibly relaxed. Zenyatta told him to imagine something simple, like an animal. So he focused on a bird in his mind, which flew though a majestic sky, dive bombing down over a forest before opening his wings and gliding across the tree tops. It passed the trees and continued over a sparkling ocean, fish occasionally jumping out. The whole world seemed to build itself around him. Either he was incredibly in the zone, or he had eaten one of Junkrat or Lucio's pot brownies. Could be either. As he continued, the bird pulled up and soared towards the peaks of two mountains. He flew around them before stopping and perching on a ledge overlooking the valley below.

Then he woke up.

"Hey. Kid." McCree said shaking him. "Wake up!"

"Ugh. What. Where? What?" Mad Dawg stuttered.

"Mission time." McCree said helping him up, then turned to Zenyatta. "The boss wants you as well."

 _Presently._

 _Bzzt._

"No…" Mad Dawg groaned turning over in his cot.

 _Bzzt._

"Piss off…" Mad Dawg groaned again.

 _Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt._

"Damn you…" Mad Dawg groaned getting up and picking up his phone, the caller id read _Caller Unknown._ "Nope." He said tossing his phone back onto his bedside counter.

 _Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt._

"FINE!" Mad Dawg shouted in annoyance, grabbing his phone and answering it. "What?!"

"Mad..Dawg! I need..your..he-lp!" McCree's voice came in shaky and static filled.

"Whoa. Whoa. Cree? Where are you?" Mad Dawg said, fear in his voice suddenly.

"I. _kshht_..Don _..kshht.._ know!" The cowboy's voice replied. "I think I'm in a trunk. In a car."

"Agh..Damn it…" Mad Dawg growled. "Listen, is there any opening? Can you see anything?"

"Hang on."

Mad Dawg threw on his overcoat and took off to the garage. He jumped onto his cycle and tore off as fast as possible, switching to a comm. link. "Anything?"

"Uh, there's a neon sign!" He heard McCree's voice. "S…I something!"

"Santa Maria Mystery Dungeon." Mad Dawg finished.

"Um. How the _kssht_ hell do you know that?" He heard McCree's confused tone.

"Don't question it." Mad Dawg replied as he tore through town. "I know where that is, hang tight!"

Mad Dawg turned left and grabbed the throttle, the engine roared to life and he tore down the street. Completely ignoring any or all speed limits.

 _Okay._ Mad Dawg thought. _Gotta find a strip club. Never thought I'd do go near that place again or when I was part of a group of Heroes… Then again, maybe I should see if they do group discounts. Sooner or later, Lucio's gonna pop the question to Hana… And the bachelor party needs to be lit._

BEEP BEEP!

"Hey asshole!"

Mad Dawg snapped back into reality as he swerved to avoid an oncoming car. Tapping on the comm link, he called McCree again. "Where are you now?"

"I dunno man!" McCree responded quickly. "Hang on… There's a lighter in here."

"Can you read the insignia on the roof top?"

"Yeah, M.D. Moto- _kssht!_ "

"Good enough!" Mad Dawg nodded. "I'm on the way!"

Mad Dawg one handily held onto the steering wheel, while with the other hand he grabbed his handgun. He scanned left and right as he drove on. They were beginning to leave town now, where would they be going? Mad Dawg cut through and alleyway and turned back onto a run-down road leading them through what was commonly known as 'Ramshackle Town'. A while ago, the government had tried to repair this part of town but they just sort of gave up on it. In a sense it depressed Mad Dawg. This area of the neighborhood was meant to be affordable homes for lower class income families, and while the homes were rebuilt (somewhat) the neighborhood really seemed to suffer. Then Mad Dawg saw it. A dark red car pulling back onto the highway.

"McCree. Listen closely." Mad Dawg began. "When I say now, start making a ton of noise, as much as possible. You need to distract whoever's driving."

"Ok-."

"Now!" Mad Dawg shouted.

"HALP!" McCree screamed loudly and began banging on the trunk. "I'M IN HERE! OH WON'T SOMEBODY HELP ME!?"

The drivers turned and fired a shot into the trunk yelling "SHUT UP!" While the driver swerved in and out of traffic, followed by a young teenager who was driving was too fast and recklessly for his own good. The duo in the car didn't notice Mad Dawg pull up next to them and shoot the driver in the head. He jumped onto the roof of the car and opened the driver's door, he yanked the corpse out and tossed it onto the road. Swinging down into the driver's seat, he punched other thug in the face and shot him in the kneecap, making him scream in pain. Mad Dawg leaned out of the car and kicked the second thug out, he grabbed him by the collar and left him be dragged across the highway, his skin on his legs being violently torn off as he screamed in pain. Mad Dawg grabbed the thug and yelled.

"I rarely say this, but eat ass!" He grabbed the thug's waist band and pushed him head first onto the road, his face being peeled off as he cried in agony. Dropping him, Mad Dawg grimaced as he heard a sickening _CRUNCH!_ As the second thug was run over by the car. He closed the doors and kicked the car into another higher gear and got off the highway. Tapping the comm. link he called McCree in the trunk.

"You okay Jesse?" Mad Dawg breathed.

"Mad Dawg. I heard gunshots and bones crunching. What happened?" McCree's voice came through the holes in the back seat.

"I'll explain later. Right now, I'm getting you outta here!"

Mad Dawg drove for the next twenty minutes until he drove past a broken chain link fence to a run-down mine shaft. Stopping the car, he jumped out and ran to the back. Opening the trunk, McCree jumped out of the trunk and grabbed Mad Dawg by the throat and began choking him.

"Gonna…kill..you!" McCree growled before realizing who it was and immediately let go and backed up. "Sorry kid!"

Wham!

McCree yelled in pain when Mad Dawg kicked him in the leg.

"Asshole." Mad Dawg growled. "You okay?"

"Yeah." McCree groaned, rubbing the back of his neck. Mad Dawg finally got a good look at him. He was covered in bruises and was a black eye. His face had some blood stained on him and his poncho.

"C'mon." Mad Dawg said, helping McCree to his feet before leading him into the mine shaft.

"Where are we?" McCree groaned.

"Tell you once where there."

The two walked as well as they could in silence for a few minutes. Eventually reaching an elevator. Mad Dawg kicked the buttons and managed to hit the 'Down' button.

"Start talkin' kid." McCree stated.

"The junkyard's my home. But I figured maybe having an extra place to lay low should anything ever happen would be a good idea. So I built myself a couple hidden bases." Mad Dawg stated as he plugged something in. A few lights hummed to life and a large room was illuminated. An overturned mine cart served as a table. Twelve computer monitors were stacked on top of each other and they all came to life. In a corner, a mine cart sat, ready to travel down some rails into a mine shaft. Several security cameras turned left and right above them, watching them.

"Holy crap." McCree said, looking around. Mad Dawg set him down on a couch and went over to a freezer, he grabbed an ice bag (which was still frozen) and walked back to McCree.

 _How is that still frozen?_

Don't worry, I got that.

 _Thanks man._

"Not the base. What happened to the two guys in the car?" McCree asked.

Mad Dawg sighed before beginning: "I found where you where, and I jumped onto the car. They shot at me and we fought for the gun, the driver tried to shoot me and I moved his hand and he pulled the trigger and put a bullet through his chin into his brain. I threw him out and attacked the second one. He tried to stab me and I kicked him, he went out the door and under the car."

"Damn." McCree sighed. "Sorry kid, the phone only had your number in it. It tried like five different numbers, it was blocked off."

"What?" Mad Dawg said turning around.

"Yeah…" McCree groaned, moving the ice pack to his eye. "There was a phone in the trunk."

"Do you have it?"

"Hang on." McCree groaned, digging for a minute. "Here."

Taking the phone, Mad Dawg walked dover to the computers he had and plugged it in. He pulled up the messages and began scrolling through it. It was true, there was only a number no one _should've_ known. Mad Dawg never gave his phone number to anyone. Not even the other agents. So far, he had given it to Randal, Jay, and… That was it. How did these random two bit thugs get his number?

"Wait here Jesse." Mad Dawg said.

"Sure! I've been violently beaten and am bleeding on your couch in an underground hideout! I'll be up and breakdancing down here in five minutes!" McCree shouted.

Walking back to the beaten-up car he had stolen and went to the driver seat. He looked under the seat and saw a phone. Grabbing it he looked around and pushed the car over to a Cliffside and pushed it down the hill. Flipping open the phone he went to recent messages. He opened the more most recent one and read it.

So why we doing this?

 _I dunno. The boss wants us to grab an Overwatch agent._

Why?

 _We need to draw another agent out._

Okay. Sounds fun!

 _Get your head in the game. The boss'll kill us if we screw this up!_

Sure, sure. It's not like we've ever SEEN this 'Boss'.

 _Look, this job can be easy, don't make it hard. We need to be careful. The agent we're after is McCree._

Oh crap!

 _Yup._

Well, lock and load.

 _Yup. Beta-756 is paying big! When we're done, meet outside Dragon Town._

"Beta…7…5…6…" Mad Dawg slowly repeated the name a few times. "Beta-756… Beta-756… Beta-756…WHY is that so familiar?"

Then something in the very back of his brain sparked. It was brief, real brief, like as brief as any respect Americans had for the 2016 President brief.

"Really?"

Sorry! Too easy! Let me try again. Like brief as in the amount of time people thought Mass Effect Andromeda was good brief. But Mad Dawg knew something. This. This was personal.

Somehow.

Returning to the main room in his base, Mad Dawg decided he needed to get the hard task done. Convince McCree not to contact Overwatch.

"Didja find anything?" McCree asked, now sitting up.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Good, I'll contact the others."

"No."

"…excuse me?" McCree said. Genuinely surprised. While Mad Dawg was probably more aggressive than the rest of Overwatch, he wasn't disrespectful. (Except to Ana, Solider 76, Reindhardt, Mercy, Torbjörn, Winston, McCree, Roadhog, Tracer, Genji, Hanzo, and Hana when they weren't around.)

"Don't contact Overwatch. This is personal."

"Kid. You murdered two thugs who kidnapped me." McCree said, trying to reason with Mad Dawg, his voice saying this wasn't up for debate.

"Et Tú Deadlock?" Mad Dawg snarked, making McCree freeze.

"What. Did you. Just say to me?" He said in a low tone, anger beginning to form.

"Oh, don't give me that crap!" Mad Dawg rolled his eyes. "You're as much a killer as I am! You were in the Deadlock Gang AND Blackwatch!" Upon seeing McCree's shocked face he stated. "What? You really think I'm THAT stupid that I didn't read the files on the agents I was going to be working with?"

"Okay. Wow." McCree said standing up with a groan. "First of all, you are WAY out of your league if you think you can win in a fight with me. Two, you have NO IDEA what your talking about. So I'd recommend you'd do us both a favor and shut your mouth before I shut it for you. And third, you think I'm trying to patronize you for killing a man? Son, if I wanted to do that, all I'd have to do is say 'Look behind you' so you'd see the mess you make _EVERYWHERE_ you go! That crap is Switzerland? King's Row? ANYTHING RING A BELL?!"

There was complete silence for a full minute, both sides breathing, trying to figure out where to go from here. Finally, Mad Dawg spoke.

"I guess Solider was wrong then."

"What?"

"He said… he said Overwatch could help." Mad Dawg sighed, his breath hitching, as if he was going to cry. "He said that Mercy could… maybe try and help me control myself, when I get scared. It didn't work. Then, then I met you."

Oh you son of a… Are you really going to do this?!

 _Don't ask me, ask the writer._

 **Whoa. Don't drag me in now!**

"What the hell are you talking about?" McCree asked, quietly, now more annoyed then angry.

"I heard your story, about what you went through. Yet how you came out on the other side. I figured… I figured maybe I could come out the other side as well. I guess I was wrong."

 _DAMN IT, DAMN IT, DAMN IT!_ McCree cursed internally, realizing what he had just did. He also had a strong feeling Mad Dawg was lying, but now. He felt like an asshole.

"You said it was personal." McCree suddenly said, stopping Mad Dawg in his tracks. "How so?"

"I dunno." Mad Dawg mumbled.

"C'mon kid! I'm trying to help here!" McCree reasoned. "I wanna help you like Reaper helped me!"

"What?" Mad Dawg said turning around in shock. "Reaper helped _**YOU?**_ "

"Yeah." McCree nodded. "He was the commander of Blackwatch. I figure since I ain't reporting this to Overwatch I can trust you with this. There were a few jobs we had to do on Route 66, dealing with the Deadlock Gang. He helped me when I needed it most. Before he became what he is today."

"So that's who Gabe is…" Mad Dawg mused.

"I figured you knew that."

"Well, I knew Reaper's name was Gabe. That was it." Mad Dawg shrugged. Sighing he continued. "They said something. Beta-576. I know that! I don't know why, but I know it has something to do with Talon." 

"Okay. The message, was there anything to go on? Name? Location?"

"Yeah. Dragon Town." Mad Dawg frowned. "No idea where that is."

"You're in luck. I do." McCree replied.

 _Meanwhile…_

A figure watched a small screen, then smiled as he laughed to himself.

 _Exactly as planned…_ He thought.

Mad Dawg and McCree pulled out onto the dirt road in a car Mad Dawg had sitting in his garage, not realizing they were heading directly into a web of deception, lies, death and truth.

 **A.N. Part One down! Come back soon. Next chapter is gonna get nuts. Fav/Review is you wanna. See you soon.**


	18. Bad Blood Part II

Mad Dawg looked around, despite being surrounded by people, he felt alone. He and McCree had arrived outside 'Dragon City' and Mad Dawg should've put two and two together to figure out it was slang for Chinatown. Now, he was walking through the streets looking for… Actually, he had no idea.

"So… What am I here for?" Mad Dawg whispered.

"Whoever sent those guys after me was probably here, there's a chance that he's still here or someone knows where he went." McCree replied, using the comm link as he was on the other side of town. "If you see anything weird, let me know."

"Gotcha." Mad Dawg nodded.

Opening one of his phones, Mad Dawg sent a quick message before returning to silently walking through the street, Mad Dawg listened to the conversations going on around him. Nothing he was hearing sounded like it was what he needed to know.

"So, you heard the rumors? They say there's a race of killer alien tacos!"

"Oh my gosh! He finally asked the question!"

"She's CHEATING ON YOU?!"

"Wanna buy some crack?"

"My name is Jeff."

"Let's get riiiiggghhhtttt into the news!"

Passing a small news crew, Mad Dawg looked away, not wanting to be noticed and ducked down another street. He paused, looking around. Street vendors lined the road selling vegetables, phone cases and steamed food Mad Dawg had never tried, but there wasn't anything suspicious.

 _Man. Why couldn't Hanzo or Genji have been kidnapped?_ Mad Dawg sighed. _They'd probably be able to help here. Speaking of which, where's this going?_

What?

 _You showed me the beginning outline you had written, this seems to be going off the rails a bit. Also, you told that MrFiretank and I quote "It's gonna get nuts." We're two chapters into this mega-story, and barely anything has happened! What gives?_

Okay, dude. We're two hundred and eighty words into the second chapter. The first one was to establish stuff. Now this one will-

 **Hey. Guys?**

WHAT?

 _WHAT?_

 ***Ahem** *** GET ON WITH IT!**

Shaking his head, Mad Dawg wandered down this street, stopping at a vendor, he got a bowl of ramen noodles, he spent awhile living off of cheap dollar store ramen noodles when he spent time in the train yard with his friends. He had heard Hanzo mention how they were nothing compared to genuine Chinatown ramen (Yes, I know Hanzo and Genji are Japanese, just roll with it.)

 _And MAN was he right!_ Mad Dawg thought slurping some noodles. They were delicious! He rounded a corner to walk down another street but froze when he heard two people talking.

"Welp, that was the boss, we gotta go. Scrap and Trash failed. We gotta split before we get found out."

"Huh, okay. Say, what'd th'boss want with 'im?"

"Mate, if I knew I'd tell you. But I dunno! Someone intercepted and cut him loose, they aren't coming here."

"Oi. That sucks mate! Well, what about this Hackey bloke?"

"It's Hakim dumbass!"

"Oh. Well, what 'appened to im?"

"He's out. He's holed up in our base."

"Ah. Along with ol' Jax-"

"Shut up ya dumb bastard! You want the 'hole world ta know?! Look, all I can say is that I don't like this. Kidnapping an Overwatch agent is a stupid move, we're putting ourselves in danger by doing this. I don't even know what this guy we're after looks like! But she wants it to be this way, so shut your trap and let's get GOING."

Looking casually, Mad Dawg saw two men wearing beaten up clothes walking away. One of them had a machete on his belt and the other had a crazed hairstyle and spikes on his clothes.

 _Junkers._

"McCree. There's Junkers here. I think they're the ones who tried to grab you. I'm going to follow them." He said into the comm link.

"Now hold up MD." McCree said urgently. "If there are Junkers involved, this complicates things. They're not just street thugs. If you get caught, your screwed."

"Yeah, yeah." Mad Dawg rolled his eyes.

"I'll making my way towards you, drop a chip and keep in contact, out." McCree finished.

Breathing deeply, Mad Dawg began to casually walking towards the two Junkers who were walking away. He was roughly ten feet away from them and decided he needed to blend in. He clicked on his tape deck and put on his headphones. He prepared one of the chips Torbjörn had made for him. It was a fascinating idea, trackers in bubble gum! Sure, the gum tasted off somewhat, but when someone chewed it, it activated the tracker, and that was pure genius! The tape whirred for a few moments, then began to play.

Mai-Ya-Hi (Ma Mi Ah)

Mai-Ya-Hoo (Ma Mi Ah)

Mai-Ya-Ha (Ma Mi Ah)

Mai-Ya-Ha-Ha

 _Yes! I love this song!_ Mad Dawg said, looking at his player. Not noticing he was still walking and walked directly into one of the two Junkers. Realizing what he did, he backed up in fear slightly as the one with spikes on her clothes turned around. Mad Dawg now saw that the Junker was a she. Her hair was bright red and had some stripes painted across her face. Her top was torn slightly and she had brass knuckles on both her hands.

"Watch where you going kid!" She snapped. "The bloody hell is with ya?!" He grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. "Your got screws lose up there or somethin'?! Cause if you do that again I'll knock em' lose!" Letting go, Mad Dawg held his hands up and backed away, before running into an alleyway. Hearing: "You'd better run kid!" Yelled at him.

 _Sloppy._ Mad dawg cursed internally. _Need to focus!_

Waiting a minute, Mad Dawg walked back out onto the street, he made his way to the end, then saw two roads split off left and right. He had no idea which way the Junkers went, but he had an idea. Grabbing his tape deck, he held it slightly above his head. The reflections on the screen were incredibly faint, but he could faintly make out the colour red off in the distance. Weaving in and out of the crowd Mad dawg made his way towards what he hoped were the Junkers, thankfully, he was correct and now continued tailing them. He saw the duo heading towards a car, only for one of their phones to ring and the two to stop. The female said something to the male and he turned and went back towards something. The female looked around and walked into a restaurant.

"McCree, maintain radio silence until I contact you." Mad dawg said, his voice clear that he was serious.

"Alright. But if after three hours you don't respond, I'm calling in backup." McCree's voice was hesitant but understanding.

Checking one of his phones, he saw a new message.

 _Golden Cat Restaurant, 20 Mins._

Knowing his contact would be there, Mad Dawg knew he had to be there.

"Got it." Mad Dawg said as he moved towards a restaurant.

 _Meanwhile…_

 _That wasn't a good idea…_ He thought.

McCree made his way towards where one of Mad Dawg's tracker chips was located. He wouldn't admit it to him, but he thought this was a _TERRIBLE_ plan! Mad Dawg was way too young to be going this deep into a mission like this, and now he was trying to follow Junkers. Some of the WORST criminals Overwatch has had to deal with!

"Including the two on our team…" He mumbled.

But this… This was different. Mad Dawg wasn't cracking jokes, he was focused, determined. It was clear no matter what McCree said, Mad Dawg was gonna power on forward towards whatever his current goal was. One the one hand, Mad Dawg was acting like a little McCree and Jesse found that humorous, as determination wasn't a bad thing. But on the other… Well, they were in the middle of Chinatown, Mad Dawg was trailing two Junkers. And Overwatch had no clue this was happening.

"And I agreed to all this…" He muttered.

Approaching where the gum was transmitting a signal, McCree looked around. Mad Dawg wasn't in sight.

"McCree, maintain radio silence until I contact you." He suddenly heard Mad Dawg's voice.

McCree grit his teeth, this was going too far. The kid was gonna get himself caught and tortured. While he'd probably survive, McCree couldn't live with the guilt of letting a kid be brutally tortured because he didn't do anything.

"Outta the way punk!"

McCree was suddenly shoved to the side by a burly man with tattered clothes and a machete on his belt. McCree's eyes widened realizing this was one of the Junkers. Somehow, he hadn't noticed him and he silently gave his thanks all the same. He watched as he got into a car and drove off. Walking over to where the signal stopped McCree looked around. He found the gum on the wall, but no Mad Dawg.

"No…" He breathed.

He looked up and saw the car driving away.

"NO…" He said his eyes going wide. "You idiot…"

Well, he had given the kid three hours.

"Why couldn't I have said one…" He muttered, sitting down. Feeling like he had just given a child a death sentence, after a few moments he shook his head. "Okay, get it together. That kid is tough. Deadlock Gang tough. He lived on his own for years, he can handle this." He muttered, trying to reassure himself.

 _Twenty Minutes Later…_

"It is so good to see you my friend!"

"Don Kim my man!"

Mad Dawg and Don Kim high-fived as the stood in the doorway to a restaurant. His surrounding body guards watched in amusement at the nearly-three-hundred-year-old crime lord and a teenager sat down and talked.

"It is so good to see you my young friend!"

"Man, your looking awesome! How's my heart holding up?" Mad Dawg laughed.

"Oh, it is fantastic! I feel like I'm one hundred and ten again! I've been playing shuffleboard like it's nobody's business!"

"That's awesome to hear!" Mad Dawg laughed. "I've been doing fine since the transplant, nothing's gone wrong as of yet."

"Good, good." Don Kim nodded. "So, what can I do for you my friend?"

"Well, remember a while ago when the whole 'Hear Incident' happened, there were some guys trying to overthrow you?" Mad Dawg noticed Don Kim's eyes narrow. "Well, did you ever deal with them?"

"Yes." Don Kim nodded. "Why would you ask?"

"Well…" Mad dawg sighed. "Someone…kidnapped my friend. He's okay now, but they were trying to get to me."

"Alright." Don Kim nodded, understanding where this was going.

"I have a feeling it wasn't your men or an ex-member of the Shimada clan, but whoever it was took them to get to me." Mad Dawg explained.

"Do you have any idea who they were?" Don Kim asked.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure they were Junkers."

Don Kim sighed, as if realizing something.

"If you can't answer this, I understand. But I wanted to ask. Do you have any idea where The Junkers may be? They mentioned something called 'Beta-576' and they're protecting a Talon agent named Hakim. He knows something about it, and it may have something to do with me. If you know anything, it would greatly help."

Don Kim looked at Mad dawg for a moment, and saw something in his eyes. He nodded after a long while before saying: "Long ago, we sold a large property in the woods to the Junker Queen. She didn't specify what she wanted it for, but it should still be out there. You might find them there. As for the Beta-576 you mentioned, I know nothing about it." He finished shaking his head.

"Where is this mansion?" Mad Dawg asked.

Don Kim looked to one of his men, then snapped his fingers. One of the guards walked forward and handed Don Kim a roll.

"I kept this in case I ever needed to return to the property for whatever reason." He explained, handing him the scroll.

"Why are you giving this to me?" Mad Dawg asked.

"When we met, you told me you didn't know much of your past, this could maybe lead to some answers. I don't know. But I do know that you gave me a new life, I tried to take it from you, but you turned around and gave it to me. And for that I will be forever grateful."

"Thank you." Mad Dawg quietly replied taking the roll.

"Is there anything else you'll need?" Don Kim asked.

"An ATV. And a gun."

Nodding Don Kim held his hand up for Mad Dawg to wait. "One other thing." He stated. "Whatever you may find on your journey, remember this: One who smiles rather than rages is always the stronger."

 _Later…_

"McCree? McCree! Come in!"

"Holy crap! Kid your alive!" McCree exclaimed, nearly dropping the beer he was drinking.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Listen, I'm gonna go check something out, I'll contact you when I know something."

"What?! Kid, this is WAY beyond both of us! We need to call in the others!"

"Jesse…I don't wanna beg. But this personal. Please man. I'm just going to _LOOK._ I ain't going into anything, I ain't gonna start anything. If..if you do this, I'll cover your tab for the next three months."

There was a pause for a few moments, then he heard McCree reply: "Five months."

"Deal." Mad Dawg said.

"Fine, but activate a tracker if anything gets to hectic."

"Alright." Mad Dawg nodded, hanging up.

Kicking the ignition on, Mad Dawg drove off on his ATV, riding silently on a dirt road, thinking about what this all meant. Why were Junkers working with Talon? What was Beta-576? And WHY did that sound so familiar? He continued his trek through a quiet forest, the only sound being occasionally and animal, and his ATV motor. Reaching a fork in the road, Mad dawg dismounted his ride and concealed it in some bushes before reading the map. Despite the fact that the left path led to a dead end, it was the correct path. Admittedly, MD was slightly puzzled, but decided he needed to do this. After a few moments of walking, he saw the car the two Junkers used. Passing by it he saw a large building in the distance.

 _Guess Kim was right…_ Mad Dawg thought.

Sneaking by the car, Mad Dawg noticed a number of Junkers walking around with weapons. Thankfully, they didn't seem to be on guard, in the sense that they knew he was here. Approaching the large house, Mad Dawg scanned around, looking for a number of things; and escape route, vehicles, a gun cache and Hakim. Hiding behind a stone fence, a Junker walked by casually. When he turned his back, Mad Dawg jumped and grabbed him. He dragged the Junker behind the wall and knocked him out, taking his earpiece, Mad Dawg muted the mic but listened to the conversations amongst the guards. Continuing his trek, he ducked behind a run-down shack and drew his silenced pistol. While it would be possible for him to run in guns blazing and ultimately lay waste to everyone, there were a few problems with that. 1.) He can still be shot, wounded and eventually killed (it may be really hard but still) 2.) If he goes berserk, he may kill the person who has info 3.) If he does that now, what would he do when he was done here? Shaking his head, he ran across the yard and hid behind another fence, getting closer to the house, Mad Dawg looked and saw the front door, but he had a feeling that going in that way would be a bad idea. Suddenly being grabbed by someone, he had a rock hit against his head, knocking him unconscious.

"Kid?"

No response.

"Kiiiiiddddd…"

"What?" Mad Dawg groaned.

Slap!

Suddenly coming two, Mad Dawg looked around, trying to figure out where he was. He was chained to a chair in (probably) the basement. Hakim was standing right in front of him, smirking down at him.

"So…" Hakim said, pulling a chair up and sitting down. "What's a little tyke like you doing all the way out here? You sure ain't a Junker."

"Got lost." Mad Dawg sighed. "Was running through the woods for some exercise, found this place, and wanted to see what was up. Turned to leave and you grabbed me."

"Sure." Hakim rolled his eyes. "That's what happened." He paused for a few moments then added: "Y'know, there's something about you that's really, REALLY familiar…"

"Look man, I don't know who you are or what's going on here, I don't wanna cause any trouble." Mad Dawg said, trying to fake honesty.

"No, no, no no no." Hakim said shaking his head standing up. "I think you're gonna be of help to us."

"Hah…Right." Mad Dawg laughed, in his deep voice. Suddenly he realized he may have screwed up.

"Wait…Beast." Hakim said, realizing who he was talking to. Then he grinned widely. "You son of a bitch! Oh man… This is gonna be fun."

Punching Mad Dawg several times just for kicks, Hakim laughed as he circled the restrained agent.

"You're a good actor, y'know that, right?" Hakim said, getting in his face. "You really did scare me back at the base. But now… You gotta be kidding me! YOU'RE the BEAST?"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg said in his 'Beast' voice.

Hakim burst out laughing loudly at Mad Dawg. He was nearly on the ground from laughing so hard. Eventually he had to stop laughing so he could try and collect his breath, once he had some breath, he continued laughing once again. Mad Dawg frowned in annoyance as Hakim had buried his face in his hands while still laughing.

"Oh man…" Hakim chuckled. "This is gonna be fun."

Suddenly pulling a knife out he jabbed it into Mad Dawg's leg, making him scream in pain.

"Oh, does that hurt?" Hakim mocked. "Don't start screaming just yet. Now _I'M_ just getting started. And I've I'm being honest… Only one of us is leaving here alive." Suddenly picking up a bat, Hakim smashed it against Mad Dawg's other leg. Causing MD to scream in pain.

"You… I now understand why Jeff Kaplan hasn't made you a playable character yet." Mad Dad growled. "You're a titanic pussy."

"Really?! ME!?" Hakim shouted. "YOU'RE the one who used a Halloween costume and scare tactics for interrogation instead of physical assault. YOU'RE the one who didn't have the spine to kill me then and there, and YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S RUN FROM EVERY ENCOUNTER WITH TALON YOU'VE EVER HAD! You wanna talk about cowardice? Well look in a freaking mirror kid!"

 _Huh. Bet McCree felt that way when I used the 'Deadlock' arguement against him._

Yeah, that was a real dick move.

Walking over to a table Hakim looked at a number of weapons sitting on it. He finally picked up a chainsaw, remembering how Mad Dawg scared him with one.

"Remember this?" He grinned. "I'm gonna use this to cut ya open."

 _OH SCREW YOU!_

"Huh… Okay." Mad Dawg sighed. "But listen, if your gonna torture me and kill me with it, do all of us a favor. Put some tarps on the ground."

"What?" Hakim asked confused.

"Seriously? C'mon man. You wanna make some poor Junker asshat spend all weekend cleaning blood stains off the walls and floor? Or worse off, you being stuck cleaning this crap up?"

"Huh…good point." Hakim muttered. Looking around he found something that would serve as a tarp. Lifting the chair Mad Dawg was restrained in, he spread the tarp, not noticing that the leg restraints were loosened somewhat.

"So…y'know a guy named Jax?" Mad Dawg coughed.

"Jax…Jax, Jax…Jax..Uhhh no." Hakim replied. "I this he was a doctor or surgeon working for us, but something happened and I'm pretty sure he's dead."

Hakim revved the chainsaw and pulled a mask over his face.

"Well, you were right about one thing." Mad Dawg sighed. "Only one of us is leaving here alive."

Hakim didn't hear Mad Dawg over the sound of the chainsaw, and didn't notice Mad Dawg's legs were free. He used them to kick Hakim in the shin, causing him to twist slightly and yelp in pain. Jumping up, Mad Dawg used the running blade to slice through his chair, setting him free. Delivering a swift kick to Hakim's nuts, Mad Dawg ripped the chainsaw from his hands and drove the blade into Hakim's leg, slicing through it. Despite him wearing a mask, Hakim's scream could be heard clearly.

Meanwhile, two Junkers were drinking beers when they heard something, the two looked towards the shed where screams were coming form.

"The hell do you suppose that's all 'bout?" One asked.

"Eh, I think Dundee found an intruder and is trying to get some information outta im'." The other replied.

"Ah."

" **AAAAGGGHHH!** " Hakim screamed as Mad Dawg latched onto his shoulder with his teeth, then bit the side of his head, violently tearing off his ear. Spitting the torn off ear out he threw Hakim into the chair as he bled all over the tarp.

"See? Tarps _were_ a good idea." Mad Dawg snarked, pulling the mask off his face. "Now, your gonna tell me what 'Beta-576' is."

"What?" Hakim groaned in pain, feeling dizzy from blood loss.

"Where are you from?"

"What? What're you talk-"

"Whatreyou ain't no country I've ever heard of! They speak English in 'Whatreyou'?!" Mad Dawg yelled, grabbing Hakim's gun.

"What?" Hakim practically whined, having a hard time hearing.

"English, mother*cker, do you speak it?!" Mad Dawg practically exploded. Before thinking; _Wow, only one censor star, this is getting intense._

Don't get used to it. This is a once-in-a-thousand-deal.

"Yes!" Hakim shouted, realizing what Mad Dawg was going to do.

"The you understand what I'm saying!"

"YES!"

"Then what's 'Beta-576'?! Why is Talon working with Junkers, and why'd you kidnap McCree!?"

"What?" Hakim groaned, his one remaining ear ringing. He immediately wished he hadn't. Mad Dawg kicked him in the stump making him cry in pain.

"Hurts, don't it?! Now say 'what' again. Say 'what' again! I dare you! I double-Mad-Dawg-dare-you! Say 'what' one. MORE. TIME!" Mad Dawg demanded in a different voice before coughing and having his voice return to normal.

"The Junker's are pushers! They're a distraction!" Hakim immediately began talking. "That's all I know I swear! They went after McCree because they thought they could bring some of the Overwatch Agents out of hiding, and as for Beta whatever, I don't know! I swear! It's a need-to-know-basis and I'm not in the need!"

Mad Dawg was breathing heavily, eyes narrowed, he stared at Hakim, who was currently slipping in his own blood, he looked at his eyes, and he saw two things. One, he was in a TON of pain, and two, he wasn't lying. Mad Dawg decided it was time to end Hakim's suffering.

"Yeah… This is already pushing the 'T' rating, so… Use your imagination." Mad Dawg said.

Walking up the stairs, Mad Dawg slowly opened the door, looking around. He slipped out of the shed he went by earlier and made a crouching sprint for the house. He found a root cellar door and opened it, the doors creaking aggressively, causing Mad Dawg to immediately look over his shoulder. Quietly walking down the stairs to the basement, Mad Dawg found a wall full of weapons. Looking at all the weapons he finally decided on two handguns with silencers, an automatic shotgun and two short blades.

 _Not nearly as nice as my chainsaw and crossbow combo…_ Mad Dawg mused.

Sneaking up into the actual house, Mad Dawg scowled when he saw the two Junkers from Dragon City. The female was talking to someone and the male was sharpening his machete. Slipping into another room, Mad Dawg exhaled. He popped a tracker into his mouth and activated it, knowing he was in DEEP and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he needed Jesse's help. Mad Dawg decided he needed to get out, so his plan was to get to the top of the house and go out through the roof. Continuing to silently traverse through the mansion, he saw beautiful Japanese art depicting shorelines and mountain ridges… All of which were defaced with dicks, stick figures and profanities. Mad Dawg heard a figure coming, so he froze in the corner. When the Junker entered, Mad Dawg realized it was the man from earlier, he aimed and shot him through the head, then caught the body and dragged it into a closet.

Continuing his journey up the house, Mad Dawg found himself slipping in and out of rooms and closets whenever a Junker came through. He could've killed them like he killed that one Junker earlier, but he was part of the group who kidnapped McCree, so he figured this was justified. Finally ducking into another room, he shut the door then heard a raspy voice.

"Wh..o..are yo..u?"

Turning around, Mad Dawg gasped slightly at the sight before him. A man lying on a bed, his head completely bandaged, stains covering the full head cast, he had a neck brace on and was hooked up to several machines. Mad Dawg turned confused and walked towards the man, who's heart rate began to accelerate.

"Whoa, whoa man! Calm down! I'm here to help!" Mad dawg hissed. "Calm down man. It's okay, tranquito, calm-a-reno."

The man took a few deep breaths, and his heart rate seemed to drop.

"Are you Jax?" Mad Dawg quietly asked.

"Yeah, I'm Jax Baja." Jax weakly replied. He looked at Mad Dawg and his eyes widened and he weakly gasped. "You…"

"Listen, I'm gonna get you outta here!" Mad Dawg cut him off.

"Your… Mad Dawg." Jax weakly breathed. "I remember you."

"What?" Mad Dawg said confused. "You…know me?"

"Yeah." Jax weakly nodded.

"If I unplug you, can you…" Mad Dawg said.

"I can't feel my legs." Jax shook his head. "They… they kept stabbing me."

"Crap." Mad Dawg said, sorrow in his voice. Suddenly hearing a voice coming Mad Dawg darted into another closet as a woman walked into the room, carrying a giant hook or something similar to it, maybe a scythe. She had spikes all over her clothing and spiked pink hair. All the colour drained form Mad Dawg's face when he realized who was standing in the room.

It was the Junker queen.

"So, 'ow ya feelin' today ya bloody prig?" She said.

Jax weakly lifted the middle finger and she hit him in the gut, making him groan in pain.

"Don'worry honey. Soon it'll all be over." She said in a twisted tone. "Turns out the incompetent assholes I sent to do one simple job failed. So, we don'need you no more. It's a shame. I was hoping to meet this… Mad Dawg. I've been told he's on a wild hunt for somethihg… Ah well." With that, she turned and left the room. Slamming the door behind him.

Waiting until she was gone, Mad Dawg returned to Jax's side.

"Listen, what is Beta-576?" He whispered.

"Take this." Jax said, giving Mad Dawg a USB drive. "And promise me you'll hurt those bastards."

Suddenly, a loud whirring sound was heard outside and over an announcer a voice yelled "THIS IS THE POLICE, COME OUT WITH YOU HANDS UP!"

"Kid." Jax said, grabbing Mad Dawg's hand. "Don't trust her. The medic. She did this to you. The lack of memories, she's behind it. M-"

Bang!

Jax suddenly stopped talking as a bullet went through his skull. Turning in shock, Mad Dawg saw the other female Junker from Dragon Town holding a smoking gun.

"Intruder!" She yelled.

"Damn it!" Mad Dawg yelled, grabbing his auto shottie, he opened fire, blasting her away. Running through the long corridor, Mad Dawg gunned down and Junker who stood in his way, non-lethal or not. Throwing himself out a window, Mad Dawg fell and landed on the hard ground. He managed to roll slightly and took off running. After a few moments, he heard yells and screams as police opened fire on the Junker house. Suddenly, he ran right into something furry. Looking up he saw the surprised face of Winston.

"Ah. Shit." Mad Dawg grumbled. As more and more agents began to appear.

 _Later…_

"What were you doing there in the first place Maddie?!" Tracer asked shocked.

"It's personal." Mad Dawg replied.

"Personal?! You knew about a Junker-Controlled and didn't tell anyone because it was PERSONAL!?" Solider 76 exclaimed in anger. "Do you have ANY IDEA how dangerous that was?!"

"Yes." Mad Dawg replied.

"What REASON would you have to do all this and not tell anyone? What reason?"

"Like I said. It was personal."

"And Hakim being found spread around the basement has nothing to do with you?"

"Yeah, he did." Mad Dawg admitted. "He knocked me out and tried to kill me, I fought back. I won."

Solider 76 was about to continue interrogating him when Winston stepped up.

"Mad Dawg, we know you don't know a lot of your past, but what you did was reckless." Winston said, trying to be 'Good Cop'.

"I have my reasons for what I did. They're personal." Mad Dawg said.

"This is quite unlike you." Mercy stated, entering the room. "What caused all this? Ever since you've heard words 'Beta-576', you've been acting off. Are you alright?"

Mad Dawg froze when she said that. Beta-576. He hadn't told anyone but McCree that, and currently, McCree wasn't present. McCree wouldn't give that kind of information to Overwatch. He may have led them to his tracker but wouldn't have given them that information. Then it hit him. What Jax said suddenly made sense.

 _Don't trust her. The medic. She did this to you._

In a shockingly quick movement, Mad Dawg launched himself at Mercy and slammed her head into the ground.

" **YOU!** " Mad Dawg roared as he throttled her as the other agents watched in horror. " **YOU DID THIS TO ME!** "

 **A.N. And Scene… This was a long one. And Personally, my favourite so far. Things are getting tense, and just so you all know, the next few chapter will be getting increasingly dark. Not 'M' territory, but things won't ever be the same.**


	19. Bad Blood Part III

**To a 'Impatience', your patience paid off, here's the next chapter.**

" **WHY?! WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME?!** "

By now, most of the agents had come to their senses, and while Tracer, Mei, and a few others were still in mute shock, Winston, Reindhardt and Solider 76 were trying to pry Mad Dawg off of Mercy. Eventually, they managed to get Mad Dawg off of the medic, and before anyone could demand to know what in the name of Doomfist's loincloth just happened, Mercy spoke up.

"I..I…I have no idea what you're talking about!" She immediately defended herself. "I never net you until Dorado!"

"Bullshit!" Mad Dawg yelled. "Beta-576! No one but me and McCree knew about that! He ain't here, so **HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW THAT?!** "

"That's enough solider!" Morrison snapped.

"Shut the hell up Jack!"

That genuinely took everyone back. The odd thing was, Mad Dawg never referred to Solider 76 as 'Jack' always 'Solider', '76', 'Morrison' or 'Boss'. And he NEVER spoke in a way to him before. Breaking free from Winston and Reinhardt's hold, (granted, they loosened slightly as they were somewhat in shock.) He went for Mercy, then stopped. He looked directly at her with hate unlike anyone had ever seen. The closest thing Mercy had seen close to this was the hate in Reaper's eyes. But this… Hurt.

"Screw this." Mad Dawg said shaking his head. Suddenly grabbing a weird device, he twisted a knob and vanished in a green light. The agents stood shocked at what they just witnessed. Until Torbjörn turned to Mercy.

"You better have a hell of an excuse." He stated.

Re-appearing outside his base, Mad Dawg began the elevator ride down when one of his phones rang.

"Hey… kid?" He heard McCree's voice.

"Jesse." Was all he said, his tone defeated and tired.

"I..I called the police, and Overwatch."

"I know." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Jesus… Kid, what the hell were you thinking?" McCree suddenly asked. "You went headfirst into a terrorist-controlled building! Again! I can't keep on keeping your secrets Dawg. At Christmas, you at least had an in-and-out plan, but here…"

"I killed him." Mad Dawg cut him off. "Hakim."

There was no response for a few moments, but Mad Dawg knew McCree was shocked.

"Holy crap dude." He finally replied.

"When I began to leave, he knocked me out, tied me up and stabbed me a bunch. He tried to kill me with a chainsaw and I fought back. I won."

"Do the others know?"

"Yeah." He paused for a few moments, then his breath stuttered. "M..Jesse?"

"Yeah?" He heard McCree reply, seeming to sense something was wrong.

"All of this… My…my memories, my insanity… Mercy did it."

"WHAT?!" He winced when Jesse yelled. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?"

"Beta-576." Was all Mad Dawg said. "She knew about it."

McCree didn't reply.

"Goodbye Jesse. Thanks for everything." Mad Dawg said quietly.

"Kid wait!"

Beep.

Closing the phone, Mad Dawg dropped it into a bucket of oil that had been left there for some time. Looking around his base, he knew McCree didn't know the location well enough, but he may have to destroy it none the less. It was time to leave. Time to disappear. Sticking his hands into his pockets, Mad Dawg flopped down on a chair, defeated. Suddenly, he felt something in his pocket, pulling out the USB drive Jax gave him, Mad Dawg's eyes widened when he remembered something else Jax had said.

 _Take this. And hurt those bastards…_

Walking over to his computer, Mad Dawg stuck the USB into a computer then noticed a warning. _Virus Detected._

Grabbing an old laptop Mad Dawg had salvaged years ago and mostly used to play old arcade emulators and stuck the USB into it. Ignoring the virus warning, he opened it. Only for the scree to go black, then a red logo appeared. At first, Mad Dawg recognized it as the 'Omnic rights' logo, then it began to change, distort, a human and an Omnic hand appearing, and the Omnic head becoming more of a mask. Then text began to appear.

Y0u Und3rs75nd the j0B. Don'7 4uck it u6.

After that, a techno-edm beat began to play. It confused Mad Dawg, until he remembered something from chapter 10.

" _Seems like Virus' new track took your newest gameplay video down."_

" _Who's Virus?"_

" _Man, I wish I was you." Lucio shook his head. "Virus is a 'EDM-DJ', his words not mine. He wears an Omnic costume and uses his music and concerts to supposedly raise money to help families affected by the Omnic Blackout, and just general crappy events in general. But…"_

"Sonuvabitch…" Mad Dawg said his eyes going wide. It all made sense.

 _Virus must've paid Talon or be part of Talon in order to use the Junkers to kidnap McCree in order to draw him out. If he wasn't he must've promised them something…_ Mad Dawg thought.

"But why is he after me?" Mad Dawg asked aloud, but shook his head. Knowing now would be a good time to go. As he began packing up a bag, he debated where he was going to go. He might head back to Scotland for a while, work in a distillery or on a fishing ship. Or maybe head back up to Canada. Thinking to what Mercy said, one word caused him to freeze.

 _Dorado_.

"SHIT!" Mad Dawg yelled in anger. Realizing something. If he was gonna vanish, he had to destroy all major evidence of him. While Overwatch would be easy, he was gonna have to go back into where it all began. The Talon base in Dorado. Still he knew he had no choice. Tonight, he was gonna do something really stupid. As he thought about this, he grabbed a wire, a knife and some other electronic bits.

 _That night…_

A truck supposedly delivering flour pulled to a stop inside a warehouse. The driver got out to go meet with the foreman, once he was outta sight, Mad dawg let go from underneath the truck and cracked his back in pain. Running to the other side of the warehouse, Mad Dawg opened a panel and slipped under it. Sliding down an air duct, Mad Dawg stopped himself when he saw a grate.

 _Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun na nah… dun na nah…_ Mad Dawg internally hummed. Kicking a duct open, he swung and landed on the ground. Looking around, Mad Dawg slipped into a nearby room marked 'Janitorial'. Quickly swapping clothes he shoved his clothes into his bag and walked out with the janitor cart. Walking down the hall, Mad Dawg began glancing at each door he walked by, trying to find a server room. As he walked down the hall, he walked right by Widowmaker, who luckily didn't notice him. Turning around a corner, he noticed a glass window with servers.

 _Jackpot._ He thought.

Ditching the disguise, Mad Dawg slipped into the server room, and keeping low, went along the rows of servers, until eventually he arrived at the motherboard computer, a large monitor displaying all the files. Sitting down in the chair, Mad Dawg frowned when he saw a lock screen asking for a user name and password. Leaning down and opening a side panel, Mad Dawg looked over the wires until he found two he was looking for, un-connecting them he re-attached them to his homemade device, he smiled as he saw the username and password appear.

 _Thank you Josh!_ He internally thanked one of his friends. Once the username and password were accepted, Mad Dawg went to the folder named 'Security'. He hit command 'F' and typed in 'Dawg'.

A few videos appeared, and Mad Dawg clicked on one. It played a video showing his first introduction to Sombra. Exiting and highlighting it, he began dragging back so all the videos with him on them would be deleted. Hitting delete, he sighed in satisfaction as the files were gone. He was pretty sure that there would be a backup hard drive somewhere, but this was a start. He just needed to get away.

Walking over to the largest server, he attached a small chip onto it before something occurred to him. Walking back to the computer, he selected 'All Files' then typed 'Beta-576'.

Loading…

Mad Dawg leaned forward, intent on finally figuring out what 'Beta-576' was. Suddenly, the screen began distorting then went black.

 _Crap._ Mad Dawg internally cursed, fearing he had just been caught.

Then the video returned, the human/Omnic logo appeared followed by a man wearing an Omnic mask, one hand seeming to be a glove made to look like an Omnic hand.

"Well, well, well." He said in a distorted voice, his pitch constantly going up and down. "It's been a long time kid."

"Virus." Mad Dawg said, hoping he was right.

"I've been looking all over for you!" Virus said, the image constantly glitching.

"And you think kidnapping some random dude is the right way to get to me? Man, you're a freaking idiot." Mad Dawg replied annoyed.

Virus toughed a high-pitched titter, which caused a chill to go down Mad Dawg's spine. Mad Dawg began racking his brain for answers as to why Virus would be after him, but he was cut off by Virus speaking again.

"Don't play dumb!" Virus demanded. "We both know he was your friend! Or are you lying about your friends again?"

Mad Dawg wanted to yell, but suddenly thought of a better response.

"I heard some of your music." Mad Dawg taunted. "It's no wonder why Lució's music is more popular."

Virus didn't move, then Virus growled and hit something and then the alarms began to go off.

"I wouldn't have said that." Virus commented. "Time to run Doggy." The video feed suddenly cut off, and Mad Dawg knew it was time to go. Running for the door, Mad Dawg took off down the hall, and headed for the fire escape. As he was sprinting up the stairs, the stairs in front of him suddenly shattered.

 _PleasedontbeReaperPleasedontbeReaperPleasedontbeReaperPleasedontbeReaperPleasedontbeReaper…_

"You." Came a deep voice.

"Craaapppp…" Mad Dawg said, eyes going wide as he saw Doomfist standing in front of him.

"You made a mistake coming here." Doomfist said.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Mad Dawg exclaimed. "I thought you'd be in Venice! Phantom of the Opera-ing it up!"

Doomfist paused for a moment and gave him a genuinely confused look. What Mad Dawg just said was confusing, and apparently, he did this a lot. Mad Dawg took the chance he had to run, making it into the hallway, he was suddenly taken down by Doomfist flying down the hall and hitting him.

"You should've stayed away." Doomfist said, cracking his knuckles.

"I'm trying to." Mad Dawg groaned, getting up. He pulled his crossbow out from his bag and cracked his neck. "I wanna be left alone."

Yelling, Doomfist shot forward, and Mad Dawg ducked, Doomfist flew overhead and skidded to a stop, Mad Dawg began firing a few arrows at Akande, who used the gauntlet to block them. In response, he fired several blasts from the cannon on his arm. Mad Dawg ran up the wall and launched himself at Doomfist, managing to land a kick on his chest. It didn't deter Doomfist much, but it was something. Hitting Mad Dawg in the face with his human fist, Doomfist charged up the gauntlet and brought it down at Mad Dawg, who jumped up and somehow managed to avoid it. He jumped and somehow managed to scorpion kick Doomfist. Who in response grabbed him and threw him into a wall. Getting back up Mad Dawg groaned, looking for his crossbow.

"I don't want to fight!" Mad Dawg shouted. "Where's Virus!?"

"Who?" Doomfist asked, as he kept on swinging.

"The Dj! Virus! He's working with you and the Junkers!"

"You think we'd ever stoop so low as to work with Junkers!?" Akande said, genuinely surprised and somewhat disgusted.

"Then why was Hakim with them!?"

"Hold on." Doomfist said, briefly stopping. "You know where he is?"

"What?" Mad Dawg said, feeling slightly tired.

"After we broke him out, the coward ran rather than stand trial for giving information. We're still searching for him."

"Well, you can stop. I killed him." Mad Dawg grumbled.

"You? Really?" Doomfist said, his voice dripping disbelief.

"Yeah, it was real bloody too." Mad Dawg replied, his hand still on the trigger of his crossbow.

"Why are you still fighting?" Doomfist asked suddenly.

"I don't go down without a fight."

"No, no. Not in that sense." Akande shook his head. "Why do you fight us? Why not join us? You are clearly skilled, you've impressed me. Why waste your time running around with a group of has-been heroes?"

"I don't care anymore." Mad Dawg shook his head. "I just wanna be left alone."

"Hm. Shame." Doomfist said.

 _ **WHAM!**_

When Mad Dawg had looked away briefly, Doomfist unleashed his powered-up punch directly into him. Shattering his ribs and sending him flying into the wall at the end of the hall.

"If you're not one of us, then you'll die like one of them." Akande stated.

Looking at his bag, Mad Dawg weakly grabbed a can of Psykik Energy. Chugging the entire can in a matter of seconds. He grabbed his crossbow, took aim and fired. The arrow shot straight and found its mark. Directly in Doomfist's shoulder. The gauntlet sparked for a few moments, then seemed to sag.

"What-?" Akande said, shocked at what had happened.

 _ **WHAM!**_

Mad Dawg appeared behind Doomfist and punched him in the back, then delivered a hard kick into the back of his leg, making Doomfist fall to one knee. Using his elbow, he hit him hard in the back of the head. Almost leap-frogging over Doomfist, he wheeled back and shouted as loudly as he could.

" **I SAID. LEAVE ME ALONE!** "

 _ **CRACK!**_

Punching Doomfist right in the face, Akande was sent backwards, stumbling a bit. He wiped the blood form his face and watched as Mad Dawg ran off, deciding to let him go.

Finding another fire escape, Mad Dawg climbed up to the roof and jumped, flying across to another rooftop he kept running and didn't stop until he was several blocks away. Eventually, he had to stop, the energy drink was wearing off and he was suddenly incredibly tired. He dropped off of a roof into an alley way and walked into the square. Sitting down at a fountain, he watched people walk by, no one paying him notice. Digging a bottle of water out from his bag he opened it and drank deeply. Feeling refreshed somewhat, he got up and decided it was time to go. Walking towards the edge of town he stopped when he heard his phone ring. Slowly picking it up and he tapped on 'Answer' and decided to wait to see who was on the other side of the phone.

"Behind you." Came a female voice.

Suddenly, a rag was held over his mouth and Mad Dawg began to pass out.

 _How many times is this going to happen before I wise up?!_ Mad Dawg internally cursed himself.

He didn't know how long he was out, but when Mad Dawg came to, he was hanging upside-down from a ceiling. Being held in place by metal chains. Groaning as he came two, Sombra walked over and smiled at him.

"Finally! Your awake!" She said. "I was hoping that much gas didn't kill you!"

"You'll be thankful it didn't." Mad Dawg whispered, still coming to. Sombra gave him a confused look before continuing on. "I saw you take on Akande. Were you out of your mind!?"

"Kinda." Mad Dawg frowned. "Can you cut me down? I think it'll be easier to talk that way."

"Hmmm… No." Sombra thought before replying. Placing her hand on the his cheek. Sighing she shook her head she added. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"It you know what's good for you, you'll cut me down and let me go. I'm done playing hero."

"Sure…" Sombra grinned. "Give me a good reason why."

Sighing, Mad Dawg began.

"Well, let's see. If you kill me, a device attached to my heart that only I can stop, will go off and it'll fry every server in Talon HQ." Mad Dawg saw Sombra's eyes grow huge upon hearing that. "Aaannndddd…. It'll also send it to the council of Talon and Overwatch."

"…you're lying." Was all Sombra said. Eyes narrowing.

"Nope." Mad Dawg smirked. Don't believe me, go ahead and try to kill me. Or cause me a heart attack. Either'll subside."

Sombra slapped him in response.

"Agh… Not what I meant." Mad Dawg groaned.

"Shut it off!" Sombra demanded.

"Up yours." Mad Dawg smirked.

"Eres un estúpido hijo de puta! Do you have any idea any idea what you're going to do to us both?!"

"Yeah, I'll go to Heaven and you'll burn in hell." Mad Dawg answered nonchalantly. "That is…If you CAN kill me. I mean, Reaper blasted me open, Widowjerk poisoned me, and Doompiss shattered every bone in my body. And none of that killed me. I'm curious if I CAN die."

 **You can.**

 _Really? Damn._

Sombra sighed, then cut a rope and Mad Dawg fell to the ground and landed head-first on the ground. Groaning, he sat up, still restrained and found Sombra's machine pistol in his face.

"You wanna find out?" She growled.

"Sure, you could do that. Or you could help me, I'll remove the device and you can get all the free tech you want!"

"What?"

"I'm looking for Virus." Mad Dawg stated. "He hacked into your base, your computer. Something tells me he's got some good stuff if he's able to bypass that much security. It took me a few minutes and a decoder to figure it all out. Call me crazy, but I get the feeling that the tech he's using would be helpful to you… Y'know, with your side projects."

Sombra frowned thinking it over, then turned back to the teen.

"So, if I help you find Virus, you'll remove the device from your heart, I'll get some awesome tech…"

"And I get to leave. I'll be gone, and I won't bother any of you ever again." Mad Dawg finished.

Sombra thought it all over, one the one hand, if what Mad Dawg was saying was true, the computer technology Virus must have would be lightyears ahead of hers! Also, she wanted to one-up that Dj-Hacker asshole Virus. She didn't want to tell Mad Dawg right now, but she and Virus had… History. On the other hand, Mad Dawg could be lying, and it might be better to kill him now. But if he WAS being honest… She couldn't take the risk.

"Alright." She nodded, undoing his chains. "Where do we go from here?"

 **A.N. Next Chapter… Y'know what? You'll just have to wait.**


	20. Bad Blood Part IV

**A.N. To the guest named 'Impatient' I was NOT trying to comment about you whining! I was trying to make a joke, or say "Hey, I hope you're ready, cause here's the next chapter!" If that got misinterpreted by ANYONE, I am sorry. I was trying to build hype for the next chapter. Anyhow, let's get on with the story. (P.S. Mature themes/content warning (Suicide reference) If you have an issue with this, I understand and do not wish to glamorize any negative actions.)**

"So… what's the plan?" Mad Dawg asked, following Sombra through the market.

"I said, keep quiet and I'll tell you when we're there!" Sombra replied, somewhat agitated.

"So… what's the plan?" Mad Dawg asked again, this time in a cheeky tone.

Sombra groaned and muttered something under her breath. Mad Dawg grinned by kept silent as he followed her through the streets of Dorado. It was getting dark, but the streets seemed no less alive. Eventually, the two walked into a store and Sombra turned to Mad Dawg.

"So, I'm not sure if I'm gonna kill you yet, but if I am, I wanted you to try the pastries this store makes. They're unbelievable. And it's be a real shame if you died before you got to try one."

Mad Dawg looked at her and didn't respond. Simply blinking.

"Kid?" She said, waving her hand in front of his face. Only to receive silence. She gave him a confused look then rolled her eyes, realizing what he was doing. "We're here."

"Oh good!" Mad Dawg said, breaking his silence. "So... what's the plan?"

"Mios dios…" Sombra muttered.

After ordering the two sat at a table outside, with Mad Dawg eating a brownie while Sombra ate a concha. Mad Dawg seemed to occasionally glance over his shoulder to see if there where was anyone who seemed sketchy. Seeming… Oddly paranoid.

"So, I called a friend of mine, and she said she noticed a couple of guys who have been hanging around here, they've been watching me occasionally, and I'm pretty sure they're the type of guys Virus might've hired."

"Th..that's cool." Mad Dawg replied, seeming tired all of a sudden. After saying that, a young girl walked up to the two.

"Holá Alejandra." Sombra said with a smile. "This is the idiot I was telling you about."

"H..hi." Alejandra said, slightly nervous after hearing form Sombra what Mad Dawg was capable of. Mad Dawg just laughed.

"He..hey kid." He said with a grin on his face.

"Don't mind him. He's an idiot." Sombra shook her head.

"Bite me…"

"Did you see the men from the other day?" Sombra asked, deciding to get to the point.

"I saw the guys again, one of them was on the phone. From what I heard, I think they're preparing to leave." Alejandra nodded.

"Crap. C'mon Dawg!" Sombra said, pulling MD up as the two followed Alejandra. Walking in silence aside from Mad Dawg occasionally laughing at something (which was starting to confuse the two girls) they came to one of the residential areas of town where three men were talking. Sombra hacked into one of their phones to try and find anything, but was unsuccessful.

"Well, they work for Virus." She frowned. "But that's all I could get."

"I'll…I'll follow them." Mad Dawg stated. "Assassin's Creed style!" He said striking a pose.

"Okay, what the hell is wrong with you?" Sombra said, grabbing Mad Dawg. Her eyes widened in disbelief when she saw his eyes were bloodshot and red.

"Nothing man… Everything's cool." He drawled.

"What did you eat at the bakery?" Sombra slowly asked, beginning to realize what happened.

"A Picadillo Duende." Mad Dawg stated. "I love hash browns!"

"No, you idiot! That was a hash brownie!" Sombra exclaimed a bit louder than she intended.

"You mean…" Alejandra began, suddenly feeling like she was going to laugh.

"Yup. The idiot's stoned." Sombra nodded. Alejandra couldn't help but laugh until Sombra forced her to stop.

"You want to get us killed?!" She hissed. "Mad Dawg, gimmie a hand here!"

"Wait, where is he?"

Turning around, Sombra's eyes widened when she realized Mad Dawg was gone.

"I should've just killed him…" She groaned.

Mad Dawg looked down at the three men from a rooftop, listening in to their conversation. He was stoned out of his mind, but thankfully, he brought his phone and was recording the conversation.

"So, why's he calling us off now?" One stated.

"Dunno man. I guess the boss got what he wanted." The second replied.

"Nah man, somethin' tells me that the Overwatch agent he's after is tougher than he thought. And now he's running scared."

The three men began to walk away, and Mad Dawg stumbled across the roof after them. Reaching the edge of the roof he thought about what to do.

 _HARDCORE PARKOUR!_ He internally shouted as he jumped.

And missed.

He fell from the roof into an alleyway with a loud _CRASH!_ Landing in a pile of boxes, which in turn covered him as one of the men came back and looked around. Seeing nothing he called: "I think it was a potted plant or something!" And disappeared. Mad Dawg pulled himself up and stumbled out after them. He was sin a weird state, his body was still high as a kite, but his mind was beginning to straighten itself out, probably because of his healing factor, or the damage he just sustained.

 _Okay, get it together._ He internally thought. _Keep following them._

Following the three men down the road, Mad Dawg began to steady his breathing. He had a feeling this was going to last awhile, but he wanted to keep his mind together enough that he could find where they were going, and hopefully, where Virus was. Following the men, he passed by a churro stand and stopped dead in his tracks and backed up to the stand.

"Gimmie seventeen." He suddenly ordered.

Meanwhile, Sombra and Alejandra were looking at a run-down garage where supposedly the men were at.

"Are you sure it's here?" Sombra asked.

"Positive."

"Hey. You guys want one?"

Turning around, Mad Dawg was munching on a churro while holding two out to them. "So, this is where they are?"

"Whoa, hold up kid." Sombra said, stopping Mad Dawg as Alejandra took a churro. "You were just wandering around higher than how Reaper rates himself over you. We need to wait until it's worn off."

"It has." Mad Dawg stated. "Enough."

"C'mon, I'll show you the entrance." Alejandra said, turning to walk towards an entrance.

"No." Mad Dawg said, stopping her. "You're going home."

"What!? No, I'm not!" Alejandra exclaimed annoyed.

"Kid, please listen." Mad Dawg said, seeming calm and rather desperate. "The guys we're up against, they're nuts. If they see you, they'll stop at nothing to kill you and anyone you care for."

"So? They'll have to see me." Alejandra huffed.

"Is she your sister or something?" Mad Dawg said, turning to Sombra. "She seems EXACTLY like you."

"She isn't Doggy." Sombra shook his head before turning to Alejandra. "But as weird as I feel saying this, he's right."

Alejandra frowned at Sombra, clearly annoyed with the answer she got.

"Kid, you've got some real spine." Mad Dawg said. "I respect that, hell. I think that's freaking awesome. I don't know what Sombra's told you about me, but the reason why I'm here and why I'm doing this is personal. I'm looking for something that I can't explain without dragging you into this as well. I've already hurt enough people. I don't want to hurt you."

Alejandra looked at Mad Dawg, she didn't see the idiotic, chainsaw-wielding, adrenaline junkie Sombra had built him up as. She saw his honest, and as much as she hated being left behind or told she was 'too young', it was clear that 'Mad Dawg' wasn't lying, and in this case, he wanted to keep her safe.

"Alright." She nodded, then surprisingly, gave Mad Dawg a hug. "I hope you find what you're looking for." Letting go she began to run back to town, waving to Sombra.

"How did you…" Sombra began, genuinely surprised.

"I don't want a kid to be hurt because of my journey." Mad Dawg answered her. "I felt like giving her the truth would be the best answer."

Nodding, Sombra internally frowned. _That's not what I expected._ She thought. Looking at her communicator, she saw a message.

Are you with him?

Yes.

Do not kill him yet.

I wasn't planning on it.

"C'mon." She said. "The entrance is over here."

The two silently walked into the run-down garage. A few car frames, rusted and covered in weeds sat on the ground. Mold and graffiti covered the walls. Mad Dawg stopped when he saw one of the skull he saw in Sombra's base.

"People know about you?" He asked.

"There's been stories, but most people know the insignia." Sombra replied.

 _ **Ratta tatta tatta!**_

"GET DOWN!" Mad Dawg yelled, diving behind a car frame as bullets ricocheted off of it. Sombra rolled out of the way as a dozen armed men appeared, wielding automatic weapons and were firing at them.

"Kill them!" One yelled.

Sombra looked to where Mad Dawg was and saw he was gone, she looked around for him and then saw one of the men had a gun pointed in her face.

"Gotcha." He said.

 **BANG!**

Suddenly collapsing dead, Mad Dawg stood with a handgun before ducking down.

"Thanks." She said shocked.

"We made a deal." Mad Dawg said. "Until this is over, you're my best freakin' friend. And something tells me that if we're gonna survive this, we need each other." He ran off again and grabbed his chainsaw and revved it.

"YEAH BABY!" He yelled as he ran into the fray. Turning invisible, Sombra ran around the men and re-appeared, firing at a few men with her machine pistol. Killing two.

 _Nine left._ She thought.

"HOT POTATO!" She heard Mad Dawg yell, followed by a man screaming as a chainsaw cut through something.

 _Eight._ She corrected herself.

Running up and hitting another thug, she flipped over him and hacked his helmet, shutting off his comm. as he tried to call for help. He looked up and Sombra grinned and knocked him out with a hard punch.

 _Seven._

Ramming into another thug, Mad Dawg grabbed his head and smashed it into his knee, shattering the visor on the helmet. Mad Dawg then grabbed a nearby wrench and smashed into his helmet. Either killing him or knocking him out. He grabbed his chainsaw and turned to the other remaining thugs. Who were staring at him nervously.

"Single file! It's conga time!"

Sombra both wanted to know what Mad Dawg was talking about but decided against it as she had a feeling that goons were being cut with a chainsaw. Turning around, she saw they had deep gashes on their torsos, but weren't dead.

"What?" Mad Dawg asked. "I wasn't gonna kill them."

"Grenade!" Sombra shouted, pointing next to Mad Dawg.

"Oh shi-" Mad Dawg exclaimed as he dove for cover as the frag went off. After the debris stopped falling Mad Dawg looked from behind his corner.

"You okay?" He called.

"Si." Sombra replied. "And you?"

"Got a chunk of brick in my leg, but I'll be fine."

Sombra looked to where the men where, she winced when she saw their remains on surrounding a black mark on the floor.

"Well, that was a hell of a conga line." Mad Dawg laughed as he pulled a chunk of brick out of his leg, groaning in pain.

"Hey… Thanks for the save." Sombra timidly said.

"No problem." Mad Dawg smiled, getting up. "There's what he need to hack!"

Sombra followed Mad Dawg over to a large set up. Sombra gasped slightly when she saw what the set-up had.

"This stuff isn't even available on the black market yet!" She exclaimed looking at the hardware. "How did Virus get it?!"

"Well, my guess is he rich, and famous." Mad Dawg began. "He also could've worked as a grey hat hacker. And maybe the companies he tested their security on gave him this stuff."

"Wait, how do you know about Grey Hat hacking?" Sombra asked confused.

"I lived with hackers for a while." Mad Dawg replied. "I don't wanna talk about it right now."

"Alright." She shrugged as she began hacking into the computer. While she was busy doing that, Mad Dawg began cleaning up (what he could) of the mess they made. One of the thugs was still alive, and was coming to when Mad Dawg came over to him.

"Oh God… Please." He rasped. "Don't kill me."

"Crap… We got a live one S!" Mad Dawg called.

"Kill him or let him live. I don't care!" Sombra called, busy still intruding the computers security system.

"Okay asshole." Mad Dawg said, turning back to the man, making him shrink in fear. "Can you walk?"

"Y..yes…"

"Here's what's gonna happen." Mad Dawg said. "You're gonna get up, take the armor off, and walk out of here. You're going to get a bottle of tequila and drink the whole thing, if anyone asks what happened, you'll say you can't remember."

"Right." The thug nodded. Then without warning, yelled and tried to stab Mad Dawg, who in response grabbed him and shot him in the chest. Killing him.

"Damn it…" Mad Dawg sighed. "I didn't want to do that."

What? You just killed like ten people! Why didn't you want to kill that one guy?

 _I thought he was defeated. I wanted to let him go._

Walking back over to Sombra he looked around, seeing servers and other stations set up around the garage.

"Why do you think he'd have a place like this?" Mad Dawg asked aloud.

"It so he has back up places." Sombra practically scoffed at the question. "If something happened to one place, he could easily pack up and move to another location and continue his work." After a few more moments she stopped. "Done."

A map began to appear, rapidly changing locations, Dorado, Oasis, Hanamura, San Francisco, Canada…

"Holy crap…" Mad Dawg breathed.

"Wow, Virus has a lot of these hideaways." Sombra commented.

"No." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Those locations… They're where I was at one point. Virus has been hunting me for years."

Suddenly, the screen cut to black and a familiar logo appeared.

"You stupid son of a bitch!" Virus yelled, appearing on the screen. "Do you have ANY IDEA what you've done?!"

"Took away your toys, and now your acting like a spoiled child." Mad Dawg retorted.

"Well f-" Virus began then stopped when he saw Sombra. "Oliva. I should've known. Of course, you'd help this shit stain."

"So, this is what you've been doing aside from your ear-bleeding music? Great life Thomas." Sombra snarked, seeming angry.

"You two…" Mad Dawg began, but stopped when Sombra glared at him.

"I'm surprised bitch." Virus said, addressing Mad Dawg. "I thought you'd ask one of your actual hacker friends to help. Not some washed up hacker whore."

Sombra was beyond mad, but before she could speak, Mad Dawg cut in.

"I went to the best for help." He stated. "It's sad really, all this awesome tech you've got…" Mad Dawg suddenly held up a detonator. "And I'm gonna blow it to hell. See ya later." Suddenly yanking the power cord, the screen went black again, as the system suddenly lost its power source. He turned to Sombra who was seething. "I know where he is."

 _Later…_

The two sat in their room on the train heading for King's Row. Neither one had spoken for quite a while and it didn't seem like they were going to talk anytime soon.

"So." Mad Dawg finally said. "You and Virus?"

Sombra glared daggers at him but eventually sighed in defeat.

"Yes." She nodded. "For a long time, we worked together. The two of us were unstoppable. We were able to break into any security system. Maybe I was impressed with his skills, or his mysterious motif, but I felt like there may have been something there." She stopped and Mad Dawg took it all in.

"What happened?" He asked quiet.

"He tried to take everything." Sombra sighed. "He installed a bug which began to encrypt my own files against me. I nearly lost everything. Akande found out what happened and he was pretty mad. Virus nearly stole all of Talon's files. It was one of the few times I was genuinely scared." She paused, rubbing her arm. Mad Dawg got up and walked over and sat next to her.

"Well, your alive! That's great! So… How'd you survive?"

Sombra smiled slightly and shook her head.

"Because of you." She replied.

"What?" Mad Dawg asked confused.

"He was going to kill me, but then we found you in an alleyway. He decided I could wait as they wanted to see if you would survive the weaponization program they developed. They had no idea about your powers."

"Huh. Why'd he call you a hacker-"

"Don't." She cut him off. "He's being an asshole. That's all."

"Okay." Mad Dawg nodded, walking back to his side and kicked his feet up again.

"How'd you get this compartment? I've seen it before online, and it's crazy expensive."

"I helped build some trains for the company." Mad Dawg stated. "Not this one, but some smaller ones. We kind of had to do discreetly because I was too young to legally be working in that kind of field, so they gave me free first-class fare for any train they owned for the rest of my life, plus a hundred thousand bucks."

"Nice." Sombra commented. "You like trains a lot, don't you?"

"Yeah, it's fun to watch the world go by when you're on one. The world seems some much more beautiful. Plus, I'm a wieldier, so trains were a bigger project, and I liked the end result." Mad Dawg explained, reminiscing on years past.

"What did you do with the money?"

"A ton of generators, arcade machines, tv's, and a ton of Typhoon Burgers."

"Eww!" Sombra said, seeming disgusted. "You eat that crap?!"

"Yeah! The Bacon-Nado Burger is the best!" Mad Dawg exclaimed, refusing to believe what he was hearing. "You've never had one?!"

"No. And I plan on keeping it that way." Sombra replied.

"You say that now…" Mad Dawg muttered.

"Listen. Back at my place, you said you were done being playing Hero. What did you mean by that?" Sombra asked, now looking out the window at the sun rising.

"I'm done with Overwatch. I'm doing being some guy who runs around moving a giant floating cart from one place to another. At one point, Overwatch was what I needed. But now, they'd never forgive me for the things I've done just to get here." Mad Dawg said, seemingly depressed. He shook his head then continued. "Once we're done, I'm leaving."

"Well… Why don't you come work for us?" Sombra replied. "You don't have to work on the front lines. And you can crash with me. Reaper and Widow will leave you be after a bit."

"Sorry. No." Mad Dawg replied. "I don't wanna be a hero, but I don't wanna be a traitor either."

Sombra nodded, seeming to understand.

"Alright." She curtly replied. "If that's how it is."

 _Meanwhile…_

"Anything?" Winston asked.

"No." Symmetra sighed. "Where ever he went, he's off the grid. Most likely he has his own power source out there, and the way he's set things up, his connections wouldn't be traceable by our technology.

"And nothing from McCree?"

"He's refusing to talk."

Winston sat down and sighed deeply. This was quite troubling. Mad Dawg had (multiple times now) lived up to the first part of his name, but now he had reason to believe they had sent him over the edge. Where ever he was, there was a good chance someone was going to be hurt.

"Hey, big guy." Tracer said with a comforting smile. "Don't feel so bad."

"I brought him into this Lena." Winston sighed. "He tried to warn us about his potential mental instabilities, we should've done more to help him."

"How could we?" Zarya asked, looking over several maps with markers on them. "He did not give us information about his past, so how could we help?"

"We could've seen it in his tonal shift." Winston reasoned. "We should've tried to help him find whatever it is he's looking for. That's what a team does."

"Oi Boss!" Junkrat said, skidding into the room. "We found em'!"

 _Meanwhile (Again)…_

Walking through a very decrepit section of King's Row. Mad Dawg and Sombra approached an abandoned apartment building. Roughly twelve years ago, this building was constructed, but the company who was building it suddenly went under, and the building was never completed. Since then it had stood there, defaced by rot and vandals. Mad Daeg remembered the place, at one pont, it was a place he called home.

"So, this is where he is…" Mad Dawg muttered.

"Yes." Sombra nodded. "According to the satellite location."

Pausing for a moment, Mad Dawg turned and faced her, saying: "You don't have to come. This is my business now."

"No way kiddo." She shook her head defiantly. "Like you said in the garage, we need each other to get through this. And with this much information and tech on the line, I ain't letting you out of my sight." She finished poking him. "C'mon."

The two climbed onto a service lift and Sombra hacked the controls. Whoever put it here did it recently as it didn't moan or creek the way the rest of the building seemed like it would. Mad Dawg jumped onto a crossing and walked over to a ladder which had arrows pointing up, as if Virus _WANTED_ to be found. Climbing up, Mad Dawg saw an opening, and jumped in. Landing on the concrete floor, with Sombra following behind, both ready for anything. Then, a string of LED lights lit up across the floor, making a path. On the wall 'Your True Past' was painted with an arrow pointing down the hall.

"Enough games Virus…" Mad Dawg growled, before taking a much more vulnerable tone. "What is this?"

As the two silently walked, a mannequin holding a steering wheel began jittering around as sparks flew off of it, followed by it jerking forward as a car crash sound effect played.

"I was left to walk that wicked path, they called Damnation way, I rested on a ridge as I went along that way." Virus' creepy, distorted voice began singing. "On this path, I travelled through the wasteland of Hell's bog. And on my journey, I met a freak who called himself Mad Dawg."

Another mannequin, this one cut in half so only the torso remained, with scrap on it to make it look Omnic, was reaching for a phone, while a pre-recorded message played.

"9-1-1. What's your emergency?"

"What. The hell." Sombra said, half fear and half demanding an answer. Whoever did this was out of their damn mind.

"Oh God…" Mad Dawg breathed as if he realized something as they passed by another figure, this one in a circle which caught fire as audio played of a woman screaming in pain.

"Where this freak of nature went, only death would follow! His very touch will cause the innocent to split open like blisters." Virus continued. "Fathers. Mothers. Husbands. Wives. Sons. Daughters. SISTERS!"

"Mad Dawg, what the hell is going on?" Sombra demanded.

"Tyler Cook." Was all Mad Dawg said, quietly, and to himself.

Another mannequin, this time one coated in scrap metal was lowered into a tub of water which sparked to life, electrifying the water. Mad Dawg kept walking, but Sombra saw his hands were so tightly clenched they were drawing blood. He was scared. No. He was TERRIFIED.

"Did it make you feel like a God freak?" Virus demanded. "Did you tell your tale as you suckled on your bitches eight teets?" Walking to another clearing, another mannequin was shown being electrocuted. And Virus' mask was hung on the wall, this one larger than any human could physically wear. Sombra followed behind him, machine pistol drawn.

"Smile for the camera Mad Dawg. You've got fans." Virus' distorted voice ordered.

"Go to hell." Mad Dawg growled. "I didn't mean…"

Shaking his head, Mad Dawg opened the next door with 'See what I see' painted on it. Opening it, he saw a large red 'X' painted, then heard something falling and an elevator rapidly descending. Pulling Sombra back, a large pile of broken bricks fell to the ground, with a mannequin covered in wire on top, imitating a severe mangling. Sombra saw newspapers hung down form the ceiling with 'Elevator Accident' as the headline, and other such things.

"Oh, this is sick." Mad Dawg whispered.

 _No. It's not possible._ Sombra thought to herself as a devastating thought occurred. The situation wasn't helped by Virus mockingly laughing at the two as they walked on, passing a mannequin on a hospital bed with a heartrate monitor flat lining. Sombra was genuinely horrified. Why would Virus set this up for a child? He was controlling all of these remotely, and was probably recording the whole thing.

"Eat shit Virus!" Mad Dawg snapped suddenly. "Mary Caworth." He then whispered.

"Let's talk about this!" Virus said.

"Oh, we're gonna! When I find you!" Mad Dawg yelled back, pure anger in his voice. Sombra though she was past the worst, but then she nearly threw up when she saw a mannequin of a baby being moved back and forth, and a hand hooked up to something moving up and down with a knife in front of a light. The shadow seeming to be stabbing the baby.

"See freak? I'm an artist too!" Virus chortled.

"Shut the hell up!"

They came to one last mannequin, this one again covered in scrap. Hooked up to four devices pulling the arms and legs off of it. Behind it were more newspaper clippings with "Mass Death" and "Suddenly Dark" as headlines. Sombra was pale seeing all this, she may work for Talon. But this was inhumane.

"Ally…Myre…" Mad Dawg whispered, seeing the mannequin. "They're all here…Aren't they?"

Walking into the final room with 'Truth…?' painted above the doorway the two saw security footage of people and Omnics, one was opening the door for an elder, one was in their car, another was making toast. Then it briefly cut to black, and they were shown dead for one reason or another. Sombra gasped at the horror while tears fell down Mad Dawg's face. With a thunderous crash, one final mannequin, this one female and wearing a replica of Virus' mask, fell from the ceiling with a noose around its neck. Swinging back and forth. A row of TV's in the shape of a cross were all playing an old news report.

"Officials are unaware of what caused the 'Omnic Blackout' as it's being called, but there are at least thirty confirmed deaths, human and Omnic, despite the latter being more affected. The shockwave caused has caused potentially millions in property damage, police are searching for the culprit in what is being called done of the worst terrorist attacks of all time. Eyewitnesses claim to have seen a figure running form the King's Row power plant, but nothing is clear just yet. The perpetrator's motivations are unknown and the CEO of Direct Line Power has yet to comment. If you know-"

"NO!" Mad Dawg yelled in anger. "That's not what happened! Is this what helps you jerk off you sick psychopathic FUCK!?" He was screaming in anger and sorrow. Suddenly he began stomping on the screen in anger. Yelling "WELL FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU!" After a few more stomps he stopped and whispered. "Fuck…"

"You… Caused… the Omnic Blackout?" Sombra whispered in disbelief, unable to process what he had just heard. And If Akande and the others were watching, she couldn't begin to imagine their reactions. Mad Dawg didn't reply, but she knew that mean 'Yes'. It was horrifying to her, and she wasn't sure why. But it also explained all the newspapers. Those were the people and Omnics who died during the blackout.

"They called it suicide!" Virus shouted over the pa's. "She was on emergency support and watch until you cut the power! Your overloaded the life support she was on and killed her! Your murdered her! Murderer! Murderer!"

Mad Dawg fell to his knees, now trying to get a grip on everything. So, this was why Virus was after him, not something with the Shimada's, not because of Hakim's death, but because he tried to make a difference seven years ago.

"What… what did you do?" Sombra's voice squeaked. She didn't know what to think about the teen standing before her.

"They died because I wanted to do the right thing." Mad Dawg said quietly. "I tried to help the oppressed, and ended up killing them."

"In the months after your crime. The families affected found a large lump of cash in their bank accounts. What did you do freak? Did you try to BUY your freedom?

"I just wanted to try and make things right." Mad Dawg whispered as he walked towards the final door.

"HUMANS deserve forgiveness! OMNICS deserve a second chance!" Virus berated him in his distorted voice, as Mad Dawg opened the final door, his blood went ice cold. "You're not either one of those things."

In front of him, were several fake test tubes with mannequins in them, each one slightly bigger than the other, to the side was an old-style computer setup with a dossier on it. Above it was a large screen, which began to play a security recording. Mad Dawg watched as the woman from Switzerland walk around a test tube with something inside.

"Journal entry twenty-two." She stated. "My name is Moira O'Deorain. After months of work and many failed attempts, I believe we may have success." Two more figures walked into the room, Mad Dawg recognized one as Angela, and the other seemed oddly familiar. "Mr. Baja." She continued. "What have you found?"

"Well, his cells are regenerating at an unnatural rate, if this goes the way it does, he'll be like a superhero!"

"Moria please!" He heard Angela practically beg. "Don't do this to him! He's just a child!"

"A child?" Moria scoffed. "Dr. Ziegler, you have to understand. This… THING isn't human. He's a creation we made. One which will change the world."

"What are we gonna call him?" Jax asked, looking in at the figure.

"Well, currently his name is Beta-576." Moria stated, looking at a clipboard.

Beta-576.

Beta-576.

Beta.

5

7

 **6**

"No…" Mad Dawg whispered, tears now flowing down his face. "No! No! No! NO!" He yelled punching through the old computer. "THAT'S NOT TURE!" He shouted.

The video cut to Moria looking at Beta-576's body, cut open with several needles inserted into it.

"Journal entry number thirty-nine." She began. "Dr. Ziegler is no longer part of our project. It's a shame really, Angela was quite skilled. And I do believe she would have been a perfect match for helping this weapons mutation's grow accordingly and helped him train to be what we need him to be. Currently, the injections I am administering will cause his bone strength to triple, making them a strong as ivory, making him all the more capable to sustain injuries. If this succeeds, we will be able to perform similar surgeries to others with frail bone structure to help prolong their lives."

The video cut to a young child, maybe only six or seven, jumping onto a man and stabbing him repetitively, screaming in anger as he did so. A few security guards came in to try and subdue him but he somehow ripped the operating table off the ground it was bolted to and threw it. At them. Suddenly cutting to static, Moria was standing before the council of Talon.

"What is it exactly that you've made?" One of the members asked, intrigued.

"A living weapon." Moria stated. "A genetic creation wit mutated abilities which can heal from almost any form of weapon injury."

"Fascinating…" Another member commented. "What do you call this… Mutant?"

"Beta-576 is his name." Moria curtly replied.

So that was it. He WANS'T human. Mad Dawg looked at his hands. He wasn't human. He was a genetic monstrosity cooked up by a crazed scientist in a Talon lab. Nothing he did mattered. Were any of his choices his own?

Cutting to static again, the screen showed Moria, seemingly having sustained some sort of physical assault.

"Journal entry number forty-seven." She grumbled. "While attempting to install a neural transmitter in order to make him controllable, someone forgot to restrain him properly, and he escaped. Our men are looking everywhere for him, but if this." She motioned to her face. "Is not clear enough, he is _extremely_ dangerous. Unless we can find and capture him, Project Beta-576 is a failure."

Cutting to static one last time, a more recent recording of Moria, Reaper and Doomfist standing around a table, with Virus' logo occasionally glitching onto the screen.

"What are you saying? That there's a new agent out there?"

"Yes." Reaper growls. "He heals, incredibly fast. I shot him numerous times, his bones didn't seem to take any damage."

Moria froze upon hearing that, she then went into deep thought.

"It can't be…" She mumbled.

Then the screen cut to Virus' logo.

"Do you see now?" Virus continued. "You're not human! You're just a freak!"

Mad Dawg silently flipped through the dossier, it was true. Everything. His body was created in a lab and experimented on profusely. Weaponizing aspects and giving him the ability to heal quickly. Moria was the one who did this to him. Mercy and Jax… They were involved. But then clicked in his brain. Something Jax said right before he died.

 _Don't trust the medic, she did this to you. M-_

 _It wasn't Mercy… It was Moria._ Mad Dawg realized.

"I..I.." Mad Dawg said. Then he broke down and began crying uncontrollably. His body racked with sobs as he realized what he was. Sombra shut off the communicator she had on and walked over to Mad Dawg. She paused for a few moments, then wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close, silently crying herself, but now, just trying to comfort Mad Dawg. He cried into her shoulder and she didn't know how to comfort him. She just allowed him to cry. Sombra stopped when she heard someone on the floor below.

"You've finally learned the truth, and now, this place will be your tomb!" Virus shouted.

Picking himself up, Mad Dawg picked up a key and handed it to Sombra.

"Run." He said.

"What?" Sombra asked confused.

"RUN!" Mad Dawg shouted, wiping tears away, suddenly drawing an assault rifle. "This is my fight!"

Running out of the room and down the stairs, Mad Dawg began blasting away. The men in the room where wearing armor. So, Mad Dawg dropped the rifle and picked up a shotgun. He rolled behind one of the men in the room and fired directly up. The bullet went straight up and blasted his head open. Behind him, Sombra was firing at another man's legs. The two were fighting their way to the door, only for them to suddenly be blown off their hinges. Reindhardt fires a thunder strike into the room, knocking the other men away. Solider 76 leads some of the agents into the room, taking the thugs down.

"Run." Mad Dawg said to Sombra, handing her a small device. "Get outside, push the button, stay still. Now GO!"

Sombra, seeing the Overwatch heroes, turns invisible and runs out another door. Turning to face the others. A battered Mad Dawg stares directly into Solider 76's visor.

"You'd better have a damn good reason for what happened here." He says.

Mad Dawg shrugged.

"It's personal." He spits.

 **A.N. Holy. Crap. That was HUGE! Thank you ALL for twenty insane** **chapters! All the reviews, favs, and follows just motivate me to write more! But You'll have to wait a bit for the next chapter. My hands hurt…**


	21. Bad Blood Part V

Winston had worked with Jack Morrison for years, he was a man he highly respected. He knew him as a man who always cared for the members of his team.

Tracer and D. Va looked to Solider 76 as a father figure, he cared for them and despite his rough exterior, could be a kind and caring man.

Junkrat would never admit to it, but he liked him. He was a decent guy who was willing to give people a second chance, regardless of what they did, so long as they wanted –and tried- to change.

Mercy would describe Morrison as a man she could confide almost anything in, she had known him for years.

Ana and Jack had been soldiers together before the Omnic crisis, and through it, and after. The two were quite close. (And no, I'm not saying that Morrison is Pharah's dad, I genuinely would believe that he could be, or Reaper could, or even Reindhardt.)

But _**NO ONE**_ knew the Jack Morrison in front of them, violently beating a teenager, demanding answers. Repetitively punching Mad Dawg over and over, bloodying his fist and jacket, Mad Dawg had lost multiple teeth, and laughed.

"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" Solider 76 demanded. "THE BODIES IN DORARDO! YOU AND SOMBRA! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Spitting blood and a tooth out, Mad Dawg scowled and spat: "It's personal." Then head butted him and swung a fist. Punching Jack in the side of the head, Mad Dawg charged him and tackled him to the floor now violently punching him in retaliation yelling in anger. Jack grabbed him and threw him away.

"You don't know what your messing with Jack-O!" He shouted. "I've had the shittiest day ever, and you're not helping!" Winston and Reindhardt ran forward and pulled the two apart who were struggling.

"We found the security footage from Dorado. You and a Talon agent slaughtered a building full of men! You stole encrypted files from us and traded them for secrecy! What possible reason could you have for those actions?!" Solider 76 demanded.

 _Wait, what?_ Mad Dawg thought. _What files? I didn't steal any files… Unless… Agh, not now._

"I've got a past man, and I'm stopping this from hurting anyone else." Mad Dawg seethed.

"Where's the line then!?" Solider 76 retorted. "How many people have to die before you're satisfied? Huh? How many?!"

"Anyone who gets in between me and Virus. He's the only one who has to die."

"Mad Dawg please!" Mei said, coming in between them. "This isn't you! We can help you!"

"Help me? Help. Me?" Mad Dawg said. "Sure, you guys have a GREAT track record for helping people! Oh man, Overwatch is so freaking amazing!"

"What're you talking about?" Mei whispered.

"Ecopoint Antarctica. When those pods malfunctioned, nothing would've been lost if you went down with them. You think running around with a glorified soft serve machine strapped to your back helps anyone! Oh, sure, I'll make sure I call you when my air conditioning unit breaks! Or should I call the Ikea gnome? No wait, I shouldn't do that. He might turn it into a weapon which starts another war!"

After finishing that, the agents gasped and Mei began to cry. Mad Dawg turned to the others, shaking with fury. He couldn't tell them about what happened. That WAS personal. He knew there was no going back to them now, or ever.

"C'mon! Let's be real here!" He exclaimed. "Every damn time we go out there, it's get on a floating tray, wait five minutes, travel for ten more minutes, done. What the hell do we even do that helps people!?" Mad Dawg shouted, but no one responded. "Oh, that's right! Jack SHIT!" Turning to Morrison he added: "Literally and figuratively in your case! You think I don't know how Reaper was you're fault? Because of the dumb choices you made?" Spinning around he shouted: "Look around us people! The only way we stop the bad guys is if someone has the balls to pull the damn trigger! Hey Lena! Remember King's Row?! That representative you saved!? Oh wait, you didn't! Maybe if you just KILLED WIDOWMAKER none of this would've happened!"

Tracer stood shocked. Both by Mad Dawg's verbal assault on everyone around her, and because of his complete lack of empathy.

"Well screw this! I'm done!" Mad Dawg stated, slashing his hand through the air. "You wanna be heroes? Fine! But count me out! I've got _actual_ problems I'm trying to solve, and until Virus is dead, they ain't gonna BE solved!"

The whole room was so quiet, you could hear the dust particles falling.

"Go." Was all Morrison eventually said. "Go on, kill Virus. See if that does anything. But don't come back."

Mad Dawg took out his I.D. card and threw it at Jack. It landed in front of him, Mad Dawg picked up another teleporter before turning back to Jack.

"Y'know, Reaper was right." He said. "I SHOULD have joined Talon." After saying that, he pushed a button and disappeared as Junkrat moved to try and stop him. But he was already gone. Leaving behind a room of destroyed relationships and lies, ones which he could never repair. While Tracer hugged Mei, trying to comfort her, Reindhardt and Torbjörn were inspecting the door Mad Dawg and Sombra came out from. Seeing the set up inside the room, their jaws dropped and their eyes widened. Meanwhile, Virus was watching, thrilled with how well this was going. On the one hand, he COULD play the recordings and destroy EVERYTHING Mad Dawg cared for, but he decided not to. Knowing that Overwatch could possibly track him, so instead, he pressed a button marked 'Show Stopper' and the whole top floor burst into flames. The two agents smelled the smoke and ran to get the others out. Once everyone was outside, they watched the building burn, eventually crumble in on itself.

"You're just going to let him kill Virus?" Winston asked, still in shock over what had happened.

"No. He won't." Solider 76 coldly replied. "Mad Dawg just left the team. Simple as that."

"What was in there?" Tracer asked still looking at the smoldering wreckage.

"A lab." Reindhardt replied, making Mercy pale somewhat. "There's something more going on… Something we don't understand." He finished looking to Solider 76, who refused to look back at him. "Maybe there's something left…"

 _Miles and miles away…_

Re-appearing in his mineshaft base, Mad Dawg sighed, feeling defeated. He went to the fridge for a beer, or something. Walking back into the main room he then saw McCree with his gun pointed at Sombra, somehow, he completely missed that.

"Kid…" McCree stated slowly, like a child disciplining his child. "What is SHE doing here?"

"What're you doing here?" Mad Dawg growled.

"I needed to talk to you." McCree stated. "I had a relative idea where this place was, so when I finally found it, I was waiting for you. And then all of a sudden, SHE appeared."

"Cree, put the gun down. She's here with me." Mad Dawg ordered. McCree gave him a confused look, but Sombra smirked in response.

"You should do what he says Billy the kid." She smiled.

McCree slowly lowered the gun, giving Mad Dawg a confused and mistrusting look. "Kid. The Junkers are coming. They're PISSED." McCree stated. "I don't know how they got the location, but after you disappeared for two days, I thought they had found you. After Symmetra found a video of you in Dorado I knew you were at least alive. So, I came here, thinking you might return. But now, we're in danger."

There was a crackling and a loud _SHWAA!_ And Junkrat and Roadhog were standing in the middle of the room.

"Oof! Never. AGAIN!" Junkrat stated, seeming dizzy because of something while Roadhog looked around surprised at where they were.

"What the hell do you two want?" Mad Dawg spat.

"And how did you two get here?" McCree asked.

"We found one of his teleportin' tv remotes." Junkrat said, holding up one of Mad Dawg's devices. "That felt weird." Seeing Sombra in the room Junkrat looked to Mad Dawg, then back to Sombra, then back to Mad Dawg. "Is there something we should…"

"Just go with it." McCree muttered. "He's in a bad mood."

"You don't know the half of it." Roadhog replied. "It just got BAD."

"We're here to help." Junkrat said.

"…what?" Mad Dawg said, confused.

"We got a message from someone who we trust. Some of our old Junker pals are coming for a visit." Roadhog said in his deep tone. "And despite what you said in King's Row, we're friends first. I don't know what happens after, but for now. You need help."

Accented voices could be heard shouting above them, someone was shouting orders.

"Crap." Mad Dawg growled, realizing he couldn't argue here. "Everyone, lock and load." He looked up and sighed. "I'm glad I installed those machines in here…"

Sombra turned invisible and ran to a corner, machine pistol ready for a fight. Junkrat reloaded his grenade launcher and Roadhog loaded his scrap gun as they moved to the side to try and hide. As Mad Dawg went to grab a device with a lot of buttons on it, McCree grabbed his shoulder.

"When we're done. We're having a LONG talk." He growled. Mad Dawg realized he hadn't been there for the outburst, but at this point, survival was key.

Mad Dawg stood in the center of the room, watching as the elevator came down the shaft. The Junker queen walked out, followed by a few enforcers. Looking around, when she saw Mad Dawg, she developed a wide grin.

"So." She said. "You must be the elusive Mad Dawg. I gotta 'mit. You're a smaller tyke than me an' the boys were expectin'."

"Yeah, and you're the Junker Queen?" Mad Dawg asked, ready to open fire. But on the other hand. He wanted to insult someone damn it!

"The one the only." The Queen smirked.

"So that's why you look a Daft Punk style BDSM braindead prostitute, over compensating asshole casserole member of the Insane Clown Posse."

Sombra was desperately trying not to laugh, while McCree from his hiding spot just listened in amazement, and was going to have to remember 'Asshole Casserole' for later…

"Wow." The Junker Queen simply replied. "You've got a real dirty mouth on you."

"Not nearly as dirty as your pants! HAYOOOOO!" Mad Dawg cut her off and shouted loudly into the sky.

"I wouldn't be talking brat." She retorted. "You wanna play badass? Lose fifty pounds then try again."

"I can lose weight, but you'll always look, act and sound like a rejected member of the Firefly Clan."

People like that film! I like that film! Rob Zombie is awesome!

 _I ain't dissin' a good movie man, I'm in the middle of an insult fest._

"You got some balls kid." The Queen laughed. "I like that, I'mma give you one chance, lay down your guns and come with us. No one else has to be hurt."

"That idea is about as good as a knitted condom." Mad Dawg retorted.

"I'm sorry, do you WANT to die?!" The Queen said, now genuinely confused as to what was driving this teen to act so stupidly.

"I'm already dead. Dead inside." Mad Dawg replied in a gravelly voice, crossing his arms across his chest in an 'X', and was suddenly wearing Reaper's mask. Meanwhile, a certain Talon enforcer was looking for his mask, confused as to where it went.

"Oh yeah? Well 'ow's about we find that little girl you were running around with in Dorado? Make 'er scream?"

"Go ahead." Mad Dawg shrugged. He could feel Sombra's anger from across the room. "She's just some kid, I got no connection to her."

The Queen was taken aback by that, from what she was told, Mad Dawg was an Overwatch Agent. Shouldn't Overwatch agents protect the innocent? Then it hit her, he was bluffing. Growing tired of all the banter, she swung her scythe off her back and pointed it at him.

"Alright tyke." She frowned. "Last chance. Come with us." The guards behind her aimed their weapons. "Or die."

"Mmmm… Nah." Mad Dawg replied, then pressing a button, two security cameras turned towards them, then the Junkers looked confused when they saw something attached to them. What they didn't know was that there were can of gasoline attached to the camera. And the devices activated, and fire began spraying, setting fire to the Junkers. The Queen ran out of the way and shouted. "KILL THIS PRICK!"

"Hey McCree? You bring headphones?" Mad Dawg called.

"What?" McCree called back, firing at another guard as more Junkers appeared from other entrances.

"We need some headphones! This is gonna be loud!" Mad Dawg yelled. Grabbing an assault rifle he jumped over the railing and yelled: "LET'S DO THIS!"

Setting off another trap, a small explosion blew another Junker across the room to where Roadhog punched him square in the face, shattering his jaw and knocking him out cold. Mad Dawg ran by and opened fire at a Junker coming in through a hole they made in a wall. Hitting him in the side he yelled and fell back. Sombra came back to view and attacked the Junker Queen directly. Dodging her scythe, Sombra did what she could to not get sliced in half. She managed to hit her in the gut and the Queen retaliated with a strong backhand across the face making her stumble back.

"Aggh! MD!" Junkrat called.

"What?" Mad Dawg yelled.

"Can I use my launcher?!"

Tossing Junkrat the control device he yelled; "Press the buttons, the devices'll do the rest!"

"Aaawwweeeesssooommmeeeee…." Junkrat grinned. Laughing like a mad man, he began rapid pressing buttons. Mounted rifles, flamethrowers, tesla cannons and the lot began firing off in all directions.

"C'mon!" Mad Dawg yelled.

McCree, Sombra, Junkrat and Roadhog finished fighting whoever they were fighting and ran off after Mad Dawg. Running down the mine path, they fired and ducked at returning fire until things got blurry for a second. Followed up by Mad Dawg smashed through a door, stopping for a moment, they saw that they were in the train yard.

"Wait. What?" Sombra said confused looking around at the new location.

"Teleporter."

"Shit." Mad Dawg cursed. "I have to blow this place up!"

"What? Kid this is your home!" McCree exclaimed while Sombra looked around. The place seemed decrepit, run down. It depressed her, it reminded her of where she used to live.

"Hold them off, I'll set the bombs." Mad Dawg replied, not acknowledging McCree.

"Mad Dawg. NO." McCree grabbed him, stopping him. "We NEED the others."

"You didn't hear. I quit." Mad Dawg replied coldly. Before pulling away and grabbing materials.

"Wait. What?" McCree said, turning to the two Junkers.

"Something went wrong. He got really pissed off. Solider 76 pushed him too far." Roadhog stated. "He bullied him into a corner, and Mad Dawg finally fought back."

"I don't know what the 'ell Jack was trying to do, but he's wrong mate." Junkrat grumbled, picking up his launcher. "You can run and hide if you want, but I'm stayin."

McCree thought it over before shaking his head. Jack may be his superior, but Mad dawg was his friend. Well, so was Jack, but right now. Mad Dawg needed help.

"You guys get back, I'mma gon' blow somethin' up." Junkrat ordered. Roadhog nodded and dragged McCree and Sombra outside

"Where are they?!" He heard the Queen yell.

"Alright, let's do this." Junkrat said to himself, pulling a RIP-Tire off his back. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" The tire rolled down the tunnel and detonated, causing a cave in. He heard the Junkers yell annoyed and in pain as some were trapped under rocks., then began pulling the stones away. Suddenly, another small explosion went off and the Queen burst through the door.

"ENOUGH!" She screamed. "Where the hell are you?!" Seeing Junkrat, her eyes narrowed dangerously. "You." She snarled.

"Hey." Junkrat said casually.

"You have some real nerve Jamison." She scowled. "Why the hell are you wastin' time with a freak like that?"

"Because, he's got some awesome toys!" Junkrat exclaimed. Pressing another button, a row of tiles on the floor sparked to life with a violent surge of electricity. Running out laughing, the Queen yelled in anger as more Junkers managed to make their way through the tunnel.

"Kill them all!" She demanded.

Running outside, Mad Dawg hit a switch and the Inferno metallically creaked to life and it spewed burning-hot fire down at them, making them scream in pain as the fire burned their flesh down to the bone. Some smashed through a window and saw McCree running across a pathway, they fired at the cowboy who rolled away from the fire, a stray bullet grazing his hat. Which he took off, saw the singe, and growled, firing back and hitting a Junker square between the eyes. Meanwhile, several Junkers had surrounded Roadhog, guns aimed, but then noticed he wasn't frightened. That in turn, made THEM frightened. Roadhog's chain and hook swung by, slamming all of them into the nearby wall, then fired his scrap gun at them. Sombra hacked into 'The Hinder Grinder' which caused the carousel to begin spinning, with their chainsaw sticking out.

 _What is with this kid and chainsaws?_ Sombra thought. Then without a second thought, fired her machine piston behind her, hitting a man in the leg. _Idiot._ Grabbing his phone, she saw Mad Dawg waving to her. Jumping over the railing she ran by McCree shouting "Time to go John Wayne!"

McCree threw a flashbang at two Junkers and slugged them both as he ran through them, making his way towards the exit. Firing his gun in the air, he hoped the others would get the message.

Junkrat and the Queen were still going at it, The Queen was pissed at the whole scenario. First some kid breaks into her home, kills a man they were being payed to protect, most of her men were arrested, and now was having to deal with the one person she probably HATED more than anyone. And SOMEHOW, even with one decent leg, was able to dodge her attacks and was attacking her. He used one of his steel traps and slapped her with hit before upper cutting her with his metal arm and dropping several bombs. Jumping on one he laughed as he was blasted through the roof, laughing all the way. Landing a good distance away, he ran the best he could to where McCree, Sombra and Roadhog were. Mad Dawg suddenly appeared from behind them.

"Sorry Ray." He mumbled.

Pressing a button, a series of bombs simultaneously exploded, the entire train yard went up in flames. Taking any Junker still in the base down with it. Mad Dawg watched silently as the home he had known for so long went up in flames. The machines he built, the rains he painted and did his best to repair, gone. The memories, the drawings he made for his friends long ago, the couch on which he and Marcus always fought over who got the good pillow, the meals he made, the first true sense of belonging. Gone.

 _And Virus is gonna burn in hell for it._ He internally seethed.

"Kid?" McCree said, reaching out, causing Mad Dawg to bat his hand away. He turned to Sombra and nodded.

"All right." He said. "I'm sorry."

Suddenly taking a knife he drove it into his chest, causing the others to scream in terror as Mad Dawg cut across his chest.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Roadhog shouted.

"Kee..pin…g a prom…ise…" He groaned.

Sombra gasped, covering her mouth in shock, McCree wanted to throw up and Junkrat's jaw just hung open.

He pried his chest open and screamed in pain as he stuck his hand into his chest. He grabbed something and ripped it out, he handed Sombra a small device with a flashing life and wires attached.

"There." He said. "It's gone."

"Dawg?" Junkrat asked. "What was…"

"Blackmail." Mad Dawg groaned as his chest closed. "I was in the wrong."

Suddenly, the phone Sombra stole began to ring. He took it out and tossed it to McCree.

"You answer it!"

"What?! Why me?!" McCree asked surprised, tossing it to Mad Dawg. "You answer it!"

"Hell no! They're looking for me!" Mad Dawg retorted. "Junkrat, you answer it, Sombra you trace it!"

"Right!" Junkrat said, taking the phone and hitting 'Answer'. Then realizing this might be a bad idea for him. "Wait."

"Is it done?" A voice came from the other end.

"Yeah. Yeah it's done." Junkrat replied, trying to deepen his voice, panic in his eyes as he looked around while Sombra hacked the phone and began tracing the signal.

"Good. Where's the queen?" The voice asked.

"She's an' the others are looting the place." Junkrat lied, pretty sure the Queen was dead. To be honest, he hoped she was.

"Good." Was all the voice said. "Bring him and the others to the drop-off."

Beep.

"Did you get it?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Yeah." Sombra nodded.

"Alright." Mad Dawg nodded, taking the digital map she was holding. "This is where we go our separate ways."

"What?!" Was collectively shouted.

"Kid, we just survived an onslaught of Junkers. You think Overwatch won't be far behind?" McCree stated logically. "If you run, it'll end badly."

"Yeah, it will." Mad Dawg nodded. "A group of adults chasing after a teenager, how do you think people will take that?"

"Dude…" Junkrat said disgusted. "That's wrong."

"Do you think I care at this point?" Mad Dawg grumbled. "My time as a hero is done. What you guys say or do next doesn't matter to me." Mad Dawg turned and walked away, reaching the top of the hill he turned around one last time, nodded, then disappeared.

"See ya later." Sombra said before cloaking and leaving in the opposite direction before turning around and going to meet with Mad Dawg.

"So now what?" Junkrat asked aloud.

"We go home. And tell Morrison to shove that Plasma rife up his ass." Roadhog growled. Clearly angered by something.

"Or we could just bail." Junkrat stated. "I'm pretty sure we killed the queen, so I think we could go wherever, do whatever."

McCree just stared off in the direction Mad Dawg had left in. He, now more than ever, was unsure of what to do now. He walked back to a guardrail and leaned against it, looking out over the wreckage that was at one point Mad Dawg's home. They had destroyed it, taken everything from him. He felt terrible, he looked at the phone he and Mad Dawg used to communicate in Dragon City, and saw he had an unanswered voice mail. Knowing he was about to be hit with a major guilt punch, he hit play.

"Hey… Jesse?" Mad Dawg's tired voice came from the other end. "Hakim… he's dead. Heh. Uh...Listen, it wasn't my fault." After a pause, he continued. "Okay, so it totally was, but that's beside the point. I'm calling you… Because I'm leaving. If this goes the way I think it might… I need to leave, disappear, vanish. Start a new chapter. So, if it does go that way, two things. One, the Train Yard? I want you, Lució, Torb, Reinder and the two Junkers to have it. Turn it into a Bro Base or a Man Cave or whatever. I lived there with my friends, and I want my friends to have it when I'm gone. And as for the mineshaft? I dunno, let the other agents have it. And as for the second thing? Well, I don't know how to put this, but uh, could you let Lució hear this as well? Okay… Phew, here goes. Thanks. You two, are the, well, the closest things to brother's I've had, possibly ever. I've mentioned my friends before, and I kinda screwed up with them as well, I never got to apologize to them, never got a chance to make things right." Mad Dawg let out a loud exhale before continuing. "But you two? You're like family, and, um… Since I may never return after this… I hope someday we can meet up again and get some drinks. Anyhow… This, I, I gotta go. I need to find out what 'Beta-576 is. So, see ya."

Beep.

"Crap." McCree sighed, rubbing his face and feeling rather depressed, like he had just failed someone important.

Meanwhile, Mad Dawg had found a truck used by the Junkers and was driving away from the smoldering wreckage. He looked next to him and said: "I know your there."

Sombra appeared behind him in the backseat with a bag of cookies, munching on one.

"Hey." She said causally.

"Oh, you're back there." He commented.

"Yup. So now what?" Sombra asked.

"I need some scrap." Mad Dawg stated, watching signs go by. "I need to make a stop, then, Virus dies."

"Alright." Sombra nodded. Eating another cookie, she heard a voice in her head.

"Change in plans. Do not kill him."

"Let's rock." Mad Dawg smirked. Flipping on the radio, he slammed on the gas petal and tore off down the road. The eve of his confrontation with Virus drawing ever closer. And one way or another, Mad Dawg was going to be changed forever.

 **A.N. And closer we come! With every step Mad Dawg takes, someone seems to get hurt. So, what happens next? For Mad Dawg? For McCree? For Sombra? For Jack? For Junkrat and Roadhog? Well… Answers will come, but good things come to those who wait.**


	22. Bad Blood Part VI

**A.N. Another chapter, settle in folks. This one's gonna be slower than the past few. Emotions are running high, and not everyone feels the same way about what's been happening.**

"Bartender… Another drink."

Junkrat was lying face down in a bowl of bar nuts, finger pointed in the air, surrounded by empty glasses and mugs. Roadhog continued drinking his fourth beer while McCree sat silently, staring at his bourbon. The three had all decided that instead of going back to the agents, they'd take a detour and hit a bar. That was four hours ago, and no one wanted to leave. Partially due to the fact that they were all intoxicated, and also because no one knew what to do. Mad Dawg, them, and Sombra were responsible for roughly twenty deaths –despite many being in self-defense- it was still an issue. Casting a glance around, McCree only now noticed that the entire bar was empty, aside from the three agents. Even the bartender had left, leaving the bar open. Roadhog got up to go find the washroom, punching the jukebox as he walked by. There was some static as a record started, then a guitar began to play.

 _Well I heard there was a secret chord,_ _  
_ _That David played and it pleased the Lord._ _  
_ _But you don't really care for music, do you?_ _  
_ _Well it goes like this: the fourth, the fifth,_ _  
_ _The minor fall and the major lift._ _  
_ _The baffled king composing Hallelujah…_

Drinking his bourbon, McCree poured another, mixing some scotch with it. He listened to the song before turning to Junkrat.

"He wanted us to have it." He stated. "The train yard."

"Well, a lotta good'll do us now." Junkrat slurred, but McCree could hear his real tone. Saddened. This was new, Junkrat was never genuinely sad. "We went an' took it from 'im and destroyed it… Just like everything we ever cared for."

McCree wasn't nearly as drunk as Junkrat, but for some reason, Junkrat was making more sense than he usually ever did. He turned to him to listen.

"That kid may be an ass..hole. But he's a damn good one." Junkrat continued his drunken rambling. "He wanted to be a hero like us. And we… and we… we really wen'an screwed him over. He gave us ever..ything he could. And we took it all, never thanked him 'er gave im' the respect we shoulda. And now we went an' took the only 'ome he 'ad. Some heroes we are." He concluded before falling back onto the counter and snoring loudly. McCree looked at his drink, his mind swirling around what Junkrat had said.

 _He gave us everything. And we took it all._ That one line, for some reason, REALLY stung. McCree mentally thought of anything to rebuke it, but deep down, he knew Junkrat was right. Mad Dawg wasn't a saint, he wasn't perfect. He was disrespectful, aggressive and vulgar. But at the same time, he fought till the end, or admitted to his cowardice and ran. Yelling in a mixture of anger and regret, McCree whipped his glass against the wall, it shattered and a shard embedding itself directly in the bullseye mark of the dart board.

"You both okay?"

Turning, Roadhog walked back into the room, seeing McCree angered and Junkrat passed out. He looked around, also noticing that the bar was empty. He took another bottle of scotch off the wall and opened it. Taking a long drink, he turned to McCree.

"He's making this harder than it has to be." He commented.

"What?" McCree asked, feeling tired.

"He could stop running, explain what's happening." Roadhog stated. "We'd be there to help him with whatever's happening to him. If someone's blackmailing him…"

"It's not blackmail." McCree shook his head. "There's something bigger going on, and none of us can see it." He could tell form Roadhog's grumble that he didn't like the answer, but he didn't know how to respond.

"So that's it then? We're just giving up and letting him leave?" Roadhog asked.

"Well, what should we do?" McCree asked.

"Drink!" Junkrat exclaimed, taking another gulp of beer. Roadhog and McCree looked at each other, then they sighed and took another drink.

"What should we do?" McCree muttered aloud.

 _Meanwhile…_

Torbjörn was currently repairing Reinhardt's armor, repairing the multiple dents he had recently acquired on his helmet. Probably he and Zarya had another wrestling match…

 _Not that it matters._ Hu mused. _His skull is so thick, it doesn't matter WHAT hits him…_

Picking up his player, he clipped it onto his waist and pressed play, one of the mixtapes Mad Dawg had made him continued playing. (Yes, he has a Walkman, look it up.)

 _Your faith was strong but you needed proof._

 _You saw her bathing on the roof._

 _Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you._

 _She tied you to a kitchen chair._

 _She broke your throne, she cut your hair._

 _And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah._

Frowning, he stopped the tape and set the player on the counter, continuing to hit the dents out of Reinhardt's helmet, something played in his mind:

 _Oh, sure, I'll make sure I call you when my air conditioning unit breaks! Or should I call the Ikea gnome? No wait, I shouldn't do that. He might turn it into a weapon which starts another war!_

Growling slightly, Torb hit the helmet harder and harder with each swing. Gritting his teeth his mind became clouded by past memories of his mistakes. What the hell was Mad Dawg saying?! He had NO IDEA what it was like to be responsible for so many innocent deaths! And what gave Mad dawg the right to accuse anyone of anything?! He should've been smarter than that! If he knew a damn thing, he'd know that Torb did _everything_ in his power to stop the Omnic Crisis, to stop the weapons he had built from being used to harm the innocent. Furthermore, what the HELL was he thinking with what he had said to Mei? That girl had been nothing but kind to him from day one, and Mad Dawg had the audacity to run his mouth against HER of all agents, mocking her loss and telling her everything she did was pointless, that she should've died along with them. It shouldn't have been Mei who died, it should've been Mad Dawg! They should've left him in that Talon base in Dorado and gone on with their lives! They should've…

"Torbjörn!"

Snapping back to reality, Torbjörn took a couple deep breaths, looking around he saw Winston was behind him, seeing rather shocked by something. Looking down at the helmet, Torbjörn didn't say anything as he looked at the remains of the helmet, crushed flat and broken, that sat on the table.

"What?" Was all he said, not turning around.

"Are you alright?" Was all Winston asked.

"I'm fine." Torbjörn replied in his gruff tone.

"You don't seem it." Winston persisted. "I don't mean to pry… But you were shouting a moment ago, is everything alright?"

 _I wasn't just thinking_... Torbjörn realized. Still seeming angered he let out a sigh and turned around to face the scientist.

"What the hell are you expecting?" He bluntly stated. "We see one of our best beat the crap out of a teenager, then said teenager compares us all to Talon, blames me for the Omnic Crisis and walks away. He's supposedly responsible for at least two dozen murders and tells us we're responsible for the deaths of countless innocents. How would YOU feel?"

Winston frowned, hoping this _wasn't_ what was upsetting the engineer. But had a feeling it was. Torbjörn always had a bit of a temper, and sometimes that could cloud his judgement, but this time, sadly what he was saying was true. Still, Winston decided to give his honest opinion.

"My opinion on Mad Dawg has drastically changed." He stated. "What he said was uncalled for and unprovoked. While I do understand his anger towards Morrison for how he's been treating him, I don't see why he's acting the way he is. Either way, we need to find him and get him the help he-"

"Oh, come off of it!" Torbjörn suddenly cut Winston off annoyed. "You really think he's going to listen to REASON? That what, he needs THERAPY?! He made the choice to turn on us! Do you really think he's going to admit that he was wrong?! That things can ever go back to the way they were?"

Winston didn't reply, saddened and shocked by the outburst. The sad thing was… He wasn't wrong.

"He blamed us for things beyond our control, and not just me. The WORST thing he did, is what he did to Mei. You know how she feels about her past! Mad Dawg knew it! But did he care? No! He attacked her till she was in tears! Open your eyes Winston! He said it himself, he doesn't want to be a hero anymore!"

Picking up the remains of the Crusader helmet, Torbjörn began to walk away, until he was stopped by a question.

"What if you're wrong?"

"What?" He asked, somewhat confused.

"What if you're wrong?" Winston repeated himself. "What if there's more to all this? What if he has no choice? What if he's doing everything he can to try and keep this hidden because he doesn't want anyone else hurt?"

"That's you're problem Winston." Torbjörn shook his head. "You always see the good in people, and sometimes you see good when there isn't any. You want to believe anyone can be redeemed. This isn't one of D. Va's fanfics. This is real life." And with that, the engineer left the room, leaving Winston to silently think about what had just been said.

 _In King's Row_

 _Knock. Knock._

"Woof! Woof!"

"Down Scout!" Emily laughed slightly as the golden retriever ran back and forth in front of the door, it's paws pattering across the floor, tail wagging rapidly. Opening the door Emily smiled at her girlfriend, and with her was Hana and Mei.

"Hi Emily!" Hana said with a grin.

"Hello everyone." Emily said happily. "Please come in!"

Walking into the room, Scout began panting happily as she ran around Hana and Mei. The latter of the two smiled and knelt down and rubbed the golden retriever behind the ears, and the puppy licked her face. Making her giggle somewhat.

"So, how's things at home?" Lena asked.

"Just fine." Emily shrugged. "Pretty quiet, but Scout every now and then gets excited. There was a bird perched on the windowsill, and Scout spent the better part of four hours trying to get at it."

Hana laughed and Mei smiled as Scout ran over to Hana, seeming to ask for attention, which the gamer was more than happy to give.

As the others walked into the kitchen, they sat around an island and began to pick away at a bowl of tortilla chips. Talking about what they'd been up to recently. After a while the four sat down to eat dinner. Emily had ordered pizza and now they were watching _Paladins: The Series._

"Hey Hana. Weren't you gonna be in this show?" Emily asked curiously.

"Yeah." Hana frowned. "I was, but Mad Dawg ended up taking the role…"

As if on cue, one of the warriors ran ahead of an entire swarm of soldiers standing opposite the enemies. As he ran, a familiar voice yelled loudly:

"LEEERRROOOOOYYYYYY JEEEEENNNNKKKIINNNNSSSSSSS!"

Emily, Hana and Lena paused for a moment, then all of them burst out laughing uncontrollably.

"Seriously?! That was HIM?!" Emily laughed, holding her sides.

"Yup!" Hana laughed.

"How's he doing?"

The laughter died down and Lena and Hana exchanged uneasy glances. Mei stuttered slightly and stood up.

"Excuse me." She said quietly before leaving for a moment.

"What happened?" Emily asked worried, looking to the other two.

"Mad Dawg…" Lena began, unsure of what to say.

"Mad Dawg's gone nuts." Hana bluntly stated. "He hurt… He hurt Mei."

Emily gave a slight gasp, shock in her eyes. She looked over to where Mei was getting a drink of water as she came back.

"What did he do?" Emily said quietly, but her anger growing ever so slightly.

"He decided to try and use my past against me." Mei said, anger apparent in her voice. The other girls seemed shocked by that, as Mei never got angry. "Something happened, he's being stubborn. He's become unhinged, hurting everyone who gets in his way. And he… and he…" Tears began to from in her eyes again as she wiped them away. "I'm sorry."

"What did he do?" Emily repeated herself, trying to comfort Mei.

"He made fun of what happened in Ecopoint Antarctica. He said I should've died along with them…" Mei finally answered.

Emily didn't know how to respond. Hana and Lena were saddened by the memory. Mad Dawg was their friend, and now… They didn't know what to think.

"I'm so sorry Mei." Emily finally said in a comforting voice. "I don't know what's going on with him, frankly I don't know him that well, but he's wrong." She said in a more serious tone. "You've always fought for the right thing, and you're more than a Hero, you're a friend."

Mei looked up with a slight smile but it faded back to a frown.

"It doesn't matter why he said it." She finally spoke after some silence. "What matters is he did. And… I can't trust him anymore."

There was silence for a bit, until Scout jumped up on her lap to try and comfort her. Doing so he accidentally hit the TV remote and changing the channel to a concert where a song was playing.

 _Maybe I've been here before._ _  
_ _I know this room, I've walked this floor._ _  
_ _I used to live alone before I knew you._ _  
_ _I've seen your flag on the marble arch._ _  
_ _Love is not a victory march,_ _  
_ _It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah._

 _Meanwhile…_

"That was a mistake Jack." Mercy stated, still finishing healing his wounds.

"No, letting him walk away was." Solider 76 returned, still in pain from the wounds Mad Dawg had given him.

"He's a child Morrison!" Mercy exclaimed, partially in anger and partially annoyed. "You didn't let him speak, you just decided to physically assault him."

"So, we're just going to ignore the wounds you're treating that he gave me? Was that justified?"

"Well, er- I never said he was perfect." Mercy replied after a moment.

"Sure, keep defending him. You know he's responsible for a mass murder, right?"

"Well… We're not perfect either…" Mercy sighed. "We've all made mistakes."

"Some of us more than others…" Solider 76 grumbled.

"So, where do we go from here?" Mercy asked, genuinely unsure of what was going to happen next.

"Well, we should try and find him, and try to find this Virus character. If Mad Dawg is still out there, he's going to be looking for him, we need to find one, and most likely we'll find the other."

"And if he decides to come back? What happens then?" Mercy persisted.

"Well, most likely he won't." Solider replied, making Mercy frown. "And if he does, he quit, there's nothing left here for him."

Mercy slapped Solider 76 in the back of the head.

"That's one of our teammates you're talking about!" She exclaimed.

"He said it himself. He quit." Solider retorted tiredly, thinking to himself just how bad things seem to have gotten and how they seem to be getting worse and worse with each passing moment.

"It's like being an Overwatch agent is a magnet for bad events…" He grumbled aloud. "Everywhere we go, everyone we care for, they all get hurt somehow."

 _Turning you're back on them doesn't do a whole world of good though…_ Mercy thought to herself, still frowning.

After finishing her work on him, Solider 76 walked back to the security room, he sat in his chair and thought to himself. What now? What should he. Not just the leader of Overwatch, but he as Jack Morrison do? Sadly, he didn't know. One thing was clear; Mad Dawg was looking for someone called Virus, more specifically, he was a Dj, an artist. Turning on the radio, Solider 76 decided to try and find one of his songs playing, so before he began a manhunt, he could at least know something about the guy. Turning on the radio, a familiar song was mid-way through its run.

 _There was a time you'd let me know_

 _What's real and going on below._

 _But now you never show it to me, do you?_

 _Remember when I moved in you?_

 _The Holy Dove was moving too._

 _And every breath we drew was hallelujah._

Sighing, Morrison slumped down in his chair. The lyrics draining him of any and all drive to continue, he sat silently before opening a bottle of whiskey he had in his desk and taking a drink.

On the outskirts of Chicago, Mad Dawg stopped his truck and got out, Sombra following behind him. The two walked under a large traffic bridge, covered in graffiti and tangled in vines. Mad Dawg casually walked through some remains of scrap under the bridge, a few homeless people huddled around burning cans to try and stay warm, while others slept up against the large concrete posts. A couple homeless Omnic watched as the duo walked by. Sombra was wearing a dark grey hoodie Mad Dawg had lent her so the two didn't stand out more than they had to. Walking up to where a shooting range target was painted on a steel door, Mad Dawg knocked on it and waited. Eventually a latch slid open and someone appeared behind the door.

"Y..yeah? What do..what do..How did you find this place?!" A shaky Omnic voice asked.

"Relax Firetank!" Mad Dawg said. "It's me!"

"M..Mad Dawg?!" The Omnic said in surprise. "I…I…I…I haven't heard from you in ages!"

"Yeah, sorry about that dude." Mad Dawg replied awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Hey, by any chance has Ray been by here recently?"

"Ray? Uh… No." The Omnic shook his head. "Ain't see his crotchety ass in a while neither…"

"Well, he and Josh did get a job at Blizzard." Mad Dawg muttered.

"Um, if you don't mind me asking Dawg. Who's she?"

"Oh, right. Uh Olivia, this is F-3 T-5n, or as I call him Firetank, Firetank, this is Olivia. She's a friend of mine."

"H..hi." Firetank said, his voice glitching slightly.

"Hey." She said.

"What do yo..you nee…d?"

"Scrap, jammers, distractors, all that stuff." Mad Dawg listed off a set of items he needed. "Also, a blowtorch."

"Ok…ay." Firetank's voice cracked again, before leaving and collecting what Mad Dawg ordered. Coming back, he opened a larger latch and passed a bag out to Mad Dawg. In return, Mad Dawg handed a stack of bills and a chip. Firetank quickly took the chip and inserted it into his head.

"Agghhh…" He sighed in relief. "Thank you, Dawg! I've been trying to find a new voice chip for so long! Thank you!"

"No problem man." Mad Dawg smiled. "See you around… Sometime."

As he and Sombra walked back to the truck, Sombra cast a glance over her shoulder. Then looked back to Mad Dawg.

"Nice guy." She said.

"Yeah, Firetank was part of my old group of friends. After a while, he became more and more recluse. Believing aliens were out to get him." Mad Dawg explained.

"You sure it didn't have anything to do with the Omnic Black-"

 _Click._

Before Sombra could react, Mad Dawg had his desert eagle out and had it pointed right between her eyes, making her sweat.

"Right, I'm gonna stop your right there." He said, with none of his usual energy. "And I'm not talking to you, I'm talking to _THEM._ "

"What?" Sombra asked, feigning knowledge.

"You think I didn't know you've been wired the entire time?" Mad Dawg bluntly stated, almost annoyed. "How stupid do you think I am?"

"How do you know I am?" Sombra responded, trying to cover her shock. To her disgust, Mad Dawg held the gun with one hand, and pulled his pants down with the other, turning around and mooning Sombra.

"Hey Reaper? Shove it!" He shouted.

Tapping an earpiece, the connection in Talon HQ shut off, Doomfist and Reaper looked to one another.

"You really think he knew all this time?" Reaper asked.

"Fifty-fifty." Doomfist replied. "Wither he knew, but what he said was true and he has our information, or he just now found out and was bluffing the whole time. Either way, I'm more interested as to what's going to happen now. He knows now, so either he'll attack Sombra, or he'll leave her behind."

After roughly three minutes of silence, the hidden camera Sombra was wearing turned back on, and she was sitting shotgun to Mad Dawg, who was driving with the radio on. Neither one seemed like they liked whatever accord they came to.

 _Maybe there's a God above._

 _And all I ever learned from love_

 _Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you._

 _It's not a cry you can hear at night._

 _It's not somebody who's seen the light._

 _It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah._

"So now what?" Sombra finally asked.

"Well, now we keep on trucking. One day at a time." Mad Dawg replied. "We'll figure it out eventually." He shrugged before adding. "And by that, I mean we find this prick, and we kill him."

 **A.N. And with that, we're one step closer to Mad Dawg's finest hour. And by that, I mean his final showdown with Virus. It might be next chapter, or the one after that. I'm not sure yet. But what I do know, is this isn't going to end peacefully… As always, I'm glad you guys are loving this story, as it would be nothing without you, and for your continuing support, I am eternally grateful. If you enjoyed or have suggestions/feedback/ideas, let me know in the review section. Fav/Follow if you want, and I'll see you all next time!**


	23. Bad Blood Part VII

"…But you two? You're like family, and, um… Since I may never return after this… I hope someday we can meet up again and get some drinks. Anyhow… This… I, I gotta go. I need to find out what 'Beta-576' is. So, see ya."

 _Beep._

Lúcio was speechless after hearing the recording.

"He's gone?" He quietly asked.

"Yeah." Junkrat nodded. "We saw him after th'attack. Then he was gone."

"Hang on, just back up for a second. When did this happen and why?" The musician asked, trying to get a grip on everything. "Why was there an attack? Why wasn't I told this was happening?"

"Oi mate, you don't know what's been 'appening?" Junkrat asked, genuinely surprised. "It's all gone ta' hell recently. Turns out Mercy may have created Mad Dawg in some sorta twisted experiment, he's all pissed off at us and someone's trying to kill im'."

"WHAT?!" Lúcio shouted, jumping off of the couch. "SOMEONE'S TRYING TO _**KILL**_ HIM?!"

"Yeah, and it ain't Talon." Junkrat stated. "That's for sure. Hell, he's been dragging that hacker Sombrero around with him for some reason. I think she's blackmailing him or helping him for some odd reason…"

"Aw, dude!" Lúcio said, feeling a mixture of fear and distress. "Wh…where is he?! We need to help him! If he's in danger, we gotta the others and find him!"

Junkrat didn't respond, he gave a slight sigh and looked away. Not wanting to answer, this only seemed to make Lúcio more and more desperate for an answer.

"He grabbed his stuff and 86'd." A new voice said.

Turning, Lúcio saw Hanzo walk in, seemingly having heard their conversation.

"He and Solider 76 had a falling out… And then 76 threw him out." Hanzo explained what had happened rather bluntly. "But considering how he attacked everyone beforehand, I don't fully blame him."

"He attacked everyone?" Lúcio said in disbelief, then shook his head. "No! He wouldn't do that! Sure he can get angry, but he'd never got so far as to physically attack-"

"Not physically. Except for Solider and Mercy." Roadhog cut him off, his deep voice cutting through the conversation. "Verbally. And it was horrifying."

"Started yellin' bout how we were the reason the Omnic Crisis happened, blamed those deaths on us, told Mei she shoulda died with her partners up in Ecopoint Antarctica, really nasty stuff." McCree listed of some of the things he had been told had happened. On the one hand, he was glad he wasn't here, because Mad Dawg had already hit him hard with his 'Blackwatch' spiel. But on the other hand, he wished he was there, just so he could deliver a reality check with his fist. But from the sounds of it, Solider 76 did, and Mad Dawg retorted with an insanity head butt. "He even straight up murdered an ex-Talon agent. Hakim drugged him after escaping from here, tied 'im up and tortured him. Mad Dawg got loose… It wasn't pretty. We still haven't found all the pieces."

"And that's his fault?" Lúcio retorted, somewhat angrily. "That asshole tortures him and Mad Dawg escapes and kills him and it's HIS fault?!"

"We ain't saying it is." Junkrat commented. "But he's become unstable. It's gotta be bad if _I'M_ the one saying that!"

"So, after all that, you guys let him walk away?!"

"No, we didn't." McCree shook his head. "He's built mini-teleporters. He used one to get outta there, warped on back to another hideout he had. I found him there and tried to get answers out of him."

"What happened next?" Lúcio pressed, still trying to wrap his head around everything that had happened.

"Junkers." Junkrat spat. "Th'queen and her cronies showed up, a lot of bullets were fired and things went boom. When the dust settled, his home was destroyed, and I'm pretty sure we killed the Junker Queen. He somehow made it outta there okay all things considered."

"And after all that, he just _walked_ away, and you didn't try to stop him?"

"Look Lúcio." McCree suddenly cut in. "Being part of Overwatch is the last thing he wants right now. Someone or something has started something we can't understand, but for some reason Mad Dawg can. If you have a suggestion that wouldn't get us, him, or a ton of civilians killed, we're listening."

Grumbling something under his breath, Lúcio left the room. McCree looked to Hanzo and the others, pointing to the door, Hanzo shook his head answering the unspoken question.

Sitting down at a computer, Lúcio logged into the mission logs and found the most recent one. Pausing for a moment, he thought over what he had been told, about Mad Dawg attacking people, him destroying his home and leaving altogether. He wasn't sure he wanted to watch the recording, but deciding against his better judgement, he clicked play regardless. He quietly watched in shock at the recording from D. Va's mech as Mad Dawg did attack Mercy and Solider 76, he did yell at everyone and just like McCree said, disappeared after. But he noticed something in the recording, looking closely at Mad Dawg he saw something in his eyes, or at least he thought he did, but he could've sworn he saw a look in Mad dawg's eyes, a look of fear and pain, as if he had seen something no one should ever have seen. Internally, he began thinking it over, is that why Mad Dawg was acting the way he was? A sense of paranoia and fear that he was attempting to run from? Then, something occurred in his mind. If he was gone, that meant Solider 76 would start sending agents out after him, that meant he didn't have much time to find his friend. Getting up and heading to his room to grab his bag and some other things, he began to think about anyone he could ask for help. Pharah? No. She and Mad Dawg may be friends, but she'd probably try to bring him in. Tracer? Probably not. From the recording, she seemed to be standing by Mei after his outburst, so she'd probably not be a good idea. Reindhardt? Well… Mad Dawg didn't attack or curse him off, but something was nagging at him that that it may be better to go at this one alone. Shaking his head, he continued thinking through any agents who could help. Zarya was busy on a mission, Genji was a likely candidate for help, but Mercy would likely…

Mercy.

Stopping, Lúcio turned and went to find the winged medic, after searching for a few minutes, he found the doctor at her desk, but she looked up at him as he walked through the door.

"Ah, Lúcio. Can I help you?" She asked.

"Maybe." He shrugged. "What can you tell me about what's been happening to Mad Dawg?"

The reaction was immediate. Her eyes widened slightly, she tried to hide it, but it was clear that Lúcio saw it. She also paled slightly, but frowned at the musician, trying to cover her reaction.

"What are you talking about?" She asked.

"Beta-576." Lúcio clarified.

"I can assure you I know nothing about that." Mercy countered, trying to keep her clam composure.

"Really? Because form the security footage I've seen, you somehow knew about something he had only told one person. And it sure wasn't you."

"I don't know what's gotten into you Santos, but I swear I only know what everyone else currently knows." Mercy repeated herself.

"I ain't trying to accuse anyone of anything, but something is going on. I'm just asking if you know what's going on." Lúcio said, trying to defuse the tension. Pausing, his anger returned slightly and he asked: "Did you know he set fire to his own home? That he felt so threatened by us that he felt the only way to try and protect himself was to run in fear, destroying everything he ever had because he believed we want him dead?"

Mercy didn't respond. She was shocked silent, was this true? Lúcio wasn't a liar, and he was good friends with Mad Dawg. But him destroying his own home to try and hide? Was Mad Dawg really so hurt by what was happening around him that he really _WAS_ going to leave? Sighing heavily, she looked back to Lúcio.

"Do you know where he is? If he's destroyed his own home. We need to help him-"

"Help him? You let Morrison beat the shit outta him and now you wanna help him?" Lúcio suddenly cut her off, angered by the whole conversation. "You won't tell me the truth, so why should I believe you'll tell him the truth?" With that, Lúcio turned and left a shocked Mercy in her office. Picking up his bag he walked towards the front door, stopping by Winston's lab, he called that he was going to be recording for the next week or so, and he'd be gone for a bit. Leaving the HQ, he knew it wouldn't take long for Mercy to tell someone what had happened.

"Where are you Dawg?" Lúcio groaned, looking up at the sky.

Psst. Santos!

"Whoa! Who's there?" Lúcio suddenly exclaimed, looking around nervously after hearing a voice.

You can't see me, but you need to move fast. Once 76 finds out you've jumped ship, it's gonna get **BAD.** For you and Mad Dawg.

"Who are you?!" Lúcio exclaimed, looking around once more. "Where are you?"

Upon receiving no answer, Lúcio decided to take the voices advice and skated off, heading for a place where he could make a call to someone he hoped he didn't have to speak to.

 _Meanwhile…_

"So. You're sure it's him?" Doomfist asked.

"Yes." Moria replied coldly, looking at the footage Sombra had been transmitting before it cut off abruptly. "This… 'Mad Dawg' is very likely to be, Project Beta-576."

"How exactly do you know?" Widowmaker asked.

"A few reasons." Moria stated. "First, no one but myself, Angela and Jax knew that Beta-576 even existed for the longest time. If the report is true, Mr. Baja has passed on, but the footage shows him conversing with… 'Mad Dawg'. Second, Mad Dawg's age appears to be what the project's natural age would be if it was -or is- still alive. Third, in Switzerland, I saw Gabriel blast his spinal column at point-blank range. Within moments, he was up and fighting again, that type of extreme regeneration is what I implemented into the project during its infancy stage." She finished listing off her reasons. "Even if he isn't the original prototype, his natural regeneration will serve us well. Harvesting those cells would allow us to create nearly immortal soldiers."

"And what of Sombra?"

"Gabriel will find her." Doomfist calmly replied.

Somewhere in a room surrounded by computer servers, monitors, turntables and beer bottles. Virus sat on his chair, watching street cam footage of Mad Dawg and Sombra. Currently, they had dropped out of sight, but they would show up again eventually. Cracking open a beer, he lifted his mask partially up and took a drink. Suddenly, the phone began to ring and he set his drink down and answered the ringing phone.

"Yo." He said.

"Hey Virus! What's happening man?"

"Lúcio? Oh snap!" Virus replied, genuinely surprised. "Uh... Things are good dude! You uh… you working on some new music?"

"Yup! That's actually why I'm calling." Lúcio continued.

"Wait. Really?" Virus said, beginning to put the pieces together hopeful as to where this may be going.

"Yeah, I was wondering if you wanted to collab. Y'know, on some new music for my next album!"

"No way man!" Virus exclaimed in disbelief before stopping and remembering something. "Wait. Didn't you say in an interview you didn't want _anything_ to do with me? That you thought I was a self-centered artist who didn't care for anyone but myself?"

There was silence for a few moments then Lúcio answered.

"Yeah. That was a dick move on my part." Lúcio sighed. "Look, I was having a bad day on that day. That interview was kind of a giant dumpster fire. I mean, they started questioning what kind of animal I'd be if I was a furry!" He laughed and heard Virus laugh slightly before continuing. "The thing is, I'm hoping we could show everyone that times have changed. You and me, together, showing them what we can make something awesome."

"Yeah. Yeah! I'm in!" Virus stated. Giving no second thought to the question.

"Awesome! I'll send you some stuff. Lemme know what you think." Lúcio said hanging up.

Virus kicked his feet up and threw his fists in the air. Once Mad Dawg was dead, he and Lúcio would become the biggest musicians on the planet. Opening a new message, he read through the songs Lúcio had written. As expected, they were great. As he read through the final song, he noticed one line that made him freeze.

 _I'm feeling mad like a dog._

Pausing, something flashed through the EDM-Dj's mind. Virus knew Lúcio was an Overwatch agent, he wasn't an idiot. But how had it never occurred to him that Mad Dawg and Lúcio may have been connected. After all, Mad Dawg had been seen with the other agents… Wait. Was Mad Dawg an Overwatch agent?

 _Does it matter?_ Virus thought to himself, shaking his head. No, it didn't. If anything, this was gonna be even more helpful. Pulling out a list titled _Potential Threats/Potential Targets_ he added Lúcio's name to the list. He hid the list before turning his attention to security footage from Dorado.

 _In an unknown location…_

Cocking a gun, Mad dawg looked down the sight on a pistol before setting it down on a table. Looking around the room, he glanced at the plain walls before turning back to Sombra.

"So." He said. "You wanna tell me why you were wired?"

"Kinda wondering why you didn't ask me before." She muttered.

"Because in here, signal service can't reach outside. You're cut off." He said, beginning to approach her, and Sombra backed up slightly, feeling nervous. "So getting false answers from your terror-pals ain't an option, plus you're power glove is weakened."

"Alright. Fine." She sighed, raising her hands. "You're not an idiot, so you've probably figured out I was gather information on you and the other agents."

"No duh." Mad Dawg said, arms crossed. "That what your character trailer was all about."

Sombra cast a confused glance at the teen, but shook her head and continued. "Anyhow, the wires _were_ to gather information, but after the incident with Virus, Gabriel was going to kill me… Akande stopped him and said that from that point on, the wires would be connected to Talon servers so they could see what I saw. Mainly he changed his mind because, like I said, you appeared right the hell outta nowhere."

"Did they see the apartment building? What Virus had set up?"

"What?"

"Did. They. See. The. Horror Show?" Mad Dawg said louder, emphasizing each word.

"No." Sombra shook her head, "The apartment had some scramblers set up, the transmissions were shut down. I turned it off after we found the lab…" She stopped when she saw the anger on Mad Dawg's face, clearly, he was still uneasy about it. "They turned them back on after we met Firetank."

"Alright." Mad Dawg sighed. "Get some sleep. We've been going non-stop for the past few days, if we're gonna finish this. We need some rest"

"Sleep? Yeah, not gonna-"

Thk.

Sombra winced then pulled something out of her neck, a small dart.

"Sucks, don't it?" Mad Dawg said smugly.

"You son of a bit-" She slurred before falling asleep. Mad Dawg caught her and carried her to the cot in the room and set her on it, silently thanking Ana for the sleep darts he 'borrowed'. Stealing her gun and gloves he considered running, or killing her, ending this odd partnership before she tried to shoot him in the back. But when it came down to it, for some reason he knew he wouldn't shoot her. Not like this. Settling down in a corner, Mad Dawg decided to take a power nap.

Lúcio Correia dos Santos wasn't a man who felt sad often. He lived a life bringing the world together through music, unifying nations together as one. He lived the good life surrounded by friends and fans who he could share his energy and boundless happiness with. But what he saw before him genuinely depressed him. The Train Yard. Mad Dawg's home. Now nothing but scrap and smoldering remains. Carefully making his way through the wreckage, he saw the remains of one of the box cars Mad Dawg and his friends painted, and there was a frog on it. It wasn't great, but it was clear Mad dawg was trying. And that made him all the sadder. Picking up a phone he realized the Train Yard really was gone, and most likely, Mad Dawg was as well. He didn't even get to say goodbye. Walking back down the path, Lúcio kicked and empty Mountain Dew can and grunted, then stopped when he saw the can hit someone.

"You." Reaper growled in his dark tone, suddenly appearing in front of him.

"Crap." Lúcio said, balling his fists. Ready to fight if he had to, but knew inside that he was proabably about to die.

"What're _you_ doing here?" Reaper asked, every word dripping with venom.

"I should ask you the same thing!" Lúcio countered.

Lucio paled when he had a shotgun shoved right in his face.

"Talk, or die." Reaper ordered.

"Well, if you _need_ to know-" Lúcio began calmly, pushing the shotgun away. Only for a second one to be aimed at his face. "Alright, alright. I'm looking for Mad Dawg."

Reaper grumbled in response.

"Something tells me you're looking for him. Or Sombra."

Reaper didn't respond. Shotgun still aimed at the Dj's face.

"You know they're working together right? She didn't betray you as far as I can tell. Why are you looking for her now?"

"Mad Dawg stole almost ninety percent of our files. We have reason to believe he's given it to Sombra." Reaper answered minimally, but it was still an answer.

"Okay. Cool." Lúcio slowly nodded, making it clear he understood although hacking and encryption wasn't something Mad Dawg knew how to do. Making pipe bombs yes, but security breach hacking,

\ no. "So, you're looking for Sombra and I'm looking for Mad Dawg."

"No." Reaper said, as if answering a question that wasn't answered.

"What?"

"No." Reaper repeated himself.

"What are you talking about?" Lúcio asked confused. He went quiet think about it then sighed and face palmed. "Damn it." He muttered realizing what the best course of action was.

"No. I'm not helping you." Reaper stated. Anger in his voice.

"I don't like the idea of it either. But if one of us finds the one we're looking for, the other will react negatively. How do you think Sombra will react if I show up looking for Mad Dawg-"

"Probably pretty calmly. She likes your music." Reaper cut him off.

"My point is." Lúcio insisted begrudgingly. "If you show up to retrieve the files, how do you think Mad Dawg will react? If they're on a hard drive of something to that liking, you can say goodbye to them. And then you'll get your ass kicked again."

Reaper growled and aimed his shotgun, ready to fire. There wasn't a sound that could be heard for miles, as if the whole world stopped to see what would happen.

"Say we were to work together." Reaper finally grumbled. "How do I know Overwatch isn't following you?"

"And how do I know Talon isn't following you?" Lúcio countered the question with a question.

"Because if they were, you'd be dead where you stand." Reaper gravely answered.

"Fair point." Lúcio nodded. "And if Overwatch was with me. You'd think they've attacked by now."

Reaper didn't want to admit it, but Lúcio was right. If Morrison and the others _were_ in hiding somewhere, they never would've let the audio medic of all agents be the one to come searching.

"You can drop me and leave, but then you won't know what I know." Lúcio continued. "I have an idea of where Mad Dawg is, and if you're looking for Sombra _AND_ Mad Dawg, you'll have a hard time finding them. You know Sombra, and I know Mad Dawg. As much as I hate to say it. We need to work together."

"Not going to happen." Reaper shook his head. "Now you can tell me what you know, or I can shoot you till you talk."

"Hold on a sec." Lúcio said suddenly going deep into thought. "You said your files were stolen. So were ours…" Muttering something he looked back to Reaper. "I know this is out of left field, but did you ever meet a guy named Virus?"

"What are you on about now?"

"Listen, I know it's an odd question, but did you ever meet a guy named Virus. He wore a weird mask that covered most of his face."

"What does it matter?" Reaper asked annoyed at how this conversation was going. He wasn't any closer to finding either Sombra or Mad Dawg, and even the Dj wasn't afraid for some reason.

"Answer the question and I'l tell you where I think they might be." Lúcio lied.

"…Yes." Reaper nodded. "The other Dj? I met him once. We thought about hiring him but never went through with it. Something happened between him and Sombra."

" **SON OF A BITCH!** " Lúcio suddenly shouted in anger. "He's behind everything!"

"What?"

"Don't you get it Reap? We're all being played here! Virus has been pulling the strings for nearly a year now!" Lúcio exclaimed, beginning to explain his reasoning. "Mad Dawg didn't steal your files! Virus did! He used Sombra connections into any potential failed hack at an Overwatch drive, then finished the job himself!"

"What exactly makes you say that?" Reaper asked, somewhat confused, but anger growing slightly at the thought of being played so easily.

"Hakim." Lúcio continued. "The Junkers. Talon wouldn't ever hire them, right?"

"Unlikely." Reaper mused. "They're unpredictable and unreliable."

"Then what was Hakim doing there?"

"I…" Reaper stopped, not actually knowing the answer to the question he was presented with. On the other side of the line. Doomfist listened in genuine shock.

" _Could he be right?"_ He thought to himself.

"This all makes sense now!" Lúcio continued, throwing his hands up in the air. "When you guys brought Virus in for the first time whenever you did, he must've planted something in your system that allowed him access! He's smart enough to know not to take it all at once, so he chipped away at it. Then when this whole fiasco began, he grabbed what was left and ran."

"Mad Dawg was seen in the area the night the files disappeared." Reaper countered, trying to find anyway to pin this on Mad Dawg.

"Mad Dawg's a pyromaniac explosives builder, chainsaw-wielding anime fan." Lúcio stated flatly. "Do you really think he could've stolen that much intel in a single night while on the run from Overwatch and after having been shot several times?"

"Let me see if I've got this straight." Reaper stated, beginning to recount Lúcio's theory. "Your saying a free-lance hacker we turned down a year ago has been manipulating us from the shadows and no one ever noticed? That ain't possible."

"That's what he wants you to think." Lúcio countered. "Who else could possibly have the skills, knowledge and abilities to do something like this?"

"Sombra." Reaper and Doomfist said in realization.

"Exactly! All this was part of his plan! Steal your own files, blame Sombra, and most likely sell them to the highest bidder, Overwatch, or you guys. And with Sombra most likely dead, because let's be honest that's the stupid kinda thing you morons would do. No one could stop him."

Repaer had lowered his shotguns and thought it over. It made sense… Too much sense… But still, this could be a crazy cover story for Mad Dawg to make an escape. Still, something seemed to be missing.

"One last question, I swear then I'll tell you what you want to know." Lúcio sighed, feeling somewhat exhausted from his exposition-rant.

Reaper nodded.

"What?"

"Are you guys missing a lot of money?"

"…." Reaper didn't respond. Both waiting for Doomfist's response, and confused by the odd question.

"Yes." He heard.

"Yes. Why?"

"I know where it is." Lúcio said, holding up the phone he found, the screen cracked and the edges burned but a small message still being visible.

We're getting payed for this right?

Ya M8, T4l0n's got ur b5ck. ;)

Why are you textin' like that mate?

U want ur $$$ or not? :|

Sorry! Didn't mean nothin' by it sir!

LOL JK, git to it. Call me when they're #= - XP Doomfist himself is #-ing on U!

Yes sir! Tell him they can count on us!

One la5t thing.. . U need to find they're hideout. It's at-

The message cut off due to the burned phone, but Reaper's eyes widened behind the mask. Realization settling in. He recognized the style of writing from the brief time Virus was at Talon HQ. As if to confirm this, Lúcio continued.

"Virus is rich, like. Stupid rich." He began. "So, it's more likely than not that he partially paid for this with his own cash. But when he gained access to your base, he must've gotten to your financial supply."

"He approached the Junkers as a member of Talon, contracting them to protect Hakim and kill Mad Dawg and the others." Reaper continued where Lúcio finished.

"Now that the queen's dead, who do you think they'll blame?" Lúcio asked.

"And with the files he has, he can sell them to those freaks." Reaper added. "Lead them right to our places of operation.

"Don't you get it? He's been playing ALL of us from day one!"

"Ever since Mad Dawg showed up…" Reaper growled. Suddenly, another thought shot through his mind. "Wait. You don't think Mad Dawg and Virus would…"

"Virus wants Mad Dawg dead." Lúcio rolled his eyes. "You don't impersonate a terrorist organization and take a hit on someone you're partnered with. Besides, what would Mad Dawg get out of this? Face it Reaper. You, me, all of Talon and all of Overwatch got played. We were just puppets on strings. This is what he wanted."

There was a un easy silence, then Reaper pulled out his shotguns and blasted a pile of scrap into smoldering remains. Yelling in absolute rage, he grabbed the remains of one of Mad Dawg's traps and threw it farther than Lúcio thought would've been possible. It slammed into the husk of MD's house with a resounding _**CLANG**_! Firing his shotguns off faster than McCree could fan the hammer, Reaper destroyed anything within sight, all while Lúcio watched on in fear. Smoke rose to the sky as shells tore through metal, destroying the twisted and burned remains of the Train Yard Mad dawg once lived in. Bullets mutilated corpses more than they already were, it was a scene of utter carnage.

" **DAMN IT!"** Reaper screamed to the sky in a voice that seemed to cut anyone who heard it down to the bone. Pure, uncontrolled fury. That's all it was. Then Lúcio realized something terrifying.

Reaper was looking right at him.

"You said you might know where they are. Mad Dawg and Sombra." He said, pointing to him and making Lúcio's blood run cold. "Tell me. **NOW**."

"I'll take you there." Lúcio replied. "Mad Dawg's lookin' for Virus. From what I've heard. He wants him dead too. I help you find Sombra, you leave Mad Dawg alone."

"Only if he mutilates that Dj beyond even Mercy's ability to help him." Reaper growled in a dark tone.

"C'mon." Lúcio said, walking back towards town near the train yard.

"Now what?" Reaper asked bitterly.

"Work with him." Doomfist instructed. "Find Sombra, retrieve the files. If you get the chance, kill Virus."

"What about the others?" Reaper growled.

"If Santos attempts to communicate with the other agents, kill him. If not, leave him be. As for Mad Dawg… Once this is all said and done. I will deal with him personally."

Shadow stepping to behind Lúcio, Reaper entered his wraith form and followed quietly behind Lúcio. However, it quickly became apparent that people noticed Lúcio, and noticed the giant black cloud following him. Several people stopped him for an autograph or a picture, and Reaper was getting more and more annoyed. Finally, after some goth teens came by and asked if Reaper was the devil, he reformed glared at them till then ran off, he then stopped Lúcio.

"We need a vehicle." He plainly said. Clearly saying this as an order. Not an idea.

"Yeah, like this we look like Light Yagami and Ryuk…" Lúcio agreed.

"What?" Reaper asked genuinely confused.

"Death Note. You ever read it or seen the show?"

"No. I'm not a weeaboo." Reaper grumbled his response.

Lúcio shook his head as they headed for a car dealership. After arriving at a somewhat shady car dealership, the two looking around before finding an old black car. Going in, they saw a skinny blonde man and another man with a beard and an overcoat.

"Yo. The hell you two want?" The blonde man asked, while the other looked at Reaper genuinely confused and intrigued.

"The Black Excalibur. We're gonna buy it." Lúcio simply stated.

"All right little man." The blonde nodded while the other man walked to another room. "My bud Silent Bob'll hook you guys up. You got the cash?"

Dropping a roll of bills on the counter, the other man looked to Reaper.

"Thanks, Allucard." The man nodded. To which Reaper groaned and face palmed. He hated Sombra's nicknames, but at least he knew what they were. Here, he had no idea what they were talking about. But had a feeling it would probably translate to 'Edge lord'.

The other man (potentially named 'Silent Bob') walked back out and handed them keys and some papers. Lúcio wrote a fake name, address and other important information that one probably shouldn't lie about but he did anyways so there. On the paper.

"Alright, you two have fun at anime-con." The blonde man laughed.

"I'm not wearing a costume." Reaper suddenly growled. Making the man stop laughing.

"What? You mean that goofy-ass mask and wannbe-hardcore jacket is legit?" He laughed as 'Silent Bob' backed away, trying to get his friend to stop. Reaper growled and removed his mask. The man took one look at his real face and passed out in shock. Silent Bob looked down then at the two, then back down, then back at the two.

"Damn it Jay." He muttered. Breaking his silence. "You two should get going. The manager will be here soon."

"Wait. You're not the manager?" Lúcio asked.

"No. Jay and I don't even work here." He said, picking his friend up and leaving. Lúcio and Reaper looked at one another, then went for the car. Wraithing into the car as Lúcio pulled the seatbelt across, the Dj looked over to him then smirked.

"What? You're not gonna put your seatbelt on?"

"Drive." Reaper ordered.

"Hey man. Seatbelts save lives."

"And I end them. DRIVE." Reaper said, still looking forward.

As the two pulled out of the lot, Lúcio reached over and turned on the radio. Suddenly, and up beat reggae song began to play.

 _Let's get together to fight this Holy Armageddon (One Love!) So, when the Man comes there will be no, no doom (One Song!)_

Without a second thought, Reaper turned the radio to another station and a loud rock song began to play.

 _Only when I start to think about it_ _._ _I hate everything about you-_

Lúcio frowned and changed the station to another, this time. A dance song playing.

 _Party rock is in the house tonight! Everybody just have a good time-_

Click.

 _Pain, without love. Pain. Can't get enough. Pain, I like it-_

Click.

 _Mister blue sky please tell us why, you had to hide away for so long (so long), Where did we go wrong?_

Click.

 _Hate me in ways, yeah, ways hard to swallow. Hate me so you can finally see what's good for you._

Click.

 _Come on everypony, smile, smile, smile! Fill my heart up wi-_

Reaper and Lúcio went for the control nob at the same time, hitting it to a random station. Suddenly, a guitar began to play, along with a familiar beat.

 _Huh!_

 _Bad boys!_

 _What'cha want? What'cha want? What'cha gonna do? When Sheriff John Brown come for you? Tell me, what'cha ya wanna do, what'cha gonna do?_

 _Yeah!_

 _Bad boys, bad boys_

 _What'cha gonna do?_

 _What'cha gonna do when they come for you?_

And neither Lúcio or Reaper reached to shut the radio off this time. Driving off as the song played, towards (hopefully) Mad Dawg so they could stop this form becoming an even bigger problem. Believe you me. If an Overwatch agent and a Talon agent can agree to drive in a car together and neither one tries to kill the other… Well, it's gotta be pretty bad.

 **A.N. AAAGGGHHHH! FINALLY! I'M BACK! It's been nearly a month, and that is WAY too long! I got hit with writers block, but thankfully, Mr. FireTank was able to give me some advice which let me finally sit down and finish this chapter! There's at least one more chapter, then the finale of Bad Blood! Also, all the song lyrics used in this chapter are not owned by me. All rights go to Blue October, Three Days Grace, JT Music, Bob Marley, LMFAO, Electronic Light Orchestra, and Inner Circle. (Not necessarily in that order). If you enjoyed, fav or follow or whatever. Let me know in the reviews what you think, or any ideas you have and I'll see you all… Next chapter!**


	24. Bad Blood Part VIII

Mad Dawg sat silently in the corner he fell asleep in, drawing something in his sketch book. He paused, looking over the design before deciding It needed more red. Digging for a moment through his bag, he found a pack of pencil crayons and resumed his work. He wasn't thinking about Virus, or what his life had become over the past few days, or what he was going to do once this was all said and done, no. Mad Dawg was working on a cartoon superhero character. With a slight smile, Mad Dawg felt at peace, it was an odd feeling, epically when everyone wanted him dead. But still, if Mad Dawg could have ANY time to feel at peace, he would gladly take it. Leaning over to the mini fridge, he grabbed a bottle of whiskey and took a long drink. Wiping the remains away, he set the bottle down and began to darken his thoughts.

 _Once Virus is gone, what then?_ He thought. _I can't go back, I've destroyed my home… Where am I going to go next? Maybe I'll go back to the Yukon, or Ireland! Yeah! Move back to Dublin, get a sheep farm and forget all this crap!_

Suddenly, a feeling like he was punched in the gut came right out of nowhere.

 _Forget… Everyone…_ Mad Dawg thought sadly. _No. I can't forget them. They did nothing wrong! They may forget me, or even hate me now, and they have the right to. I don't! But I can't forget the good they did, the good times, the missions, the friendships… Author. Don't you DARE make this a "Friendship saves all" story!_

 **I'm not.**

 _Good… Okay…_

Glancing over to the cot, Mad Dawg noticed Sombra was starting to get up, dragging himself off the ground, Mad Dawg grabbed a box of Lucio-Oh's and a couple Panther Protein Bars and began eating some cereal as the Spanish hacker stretched groggily.

"Mornin'." Mad Dawg said, a mouthful of cereal. "Want some cereal?"

"YOU DISGUSTING MUTANT PERVERTIDO!" Sombra yelled in a sudden anger, remembering what had happened the night before. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME WHILE I WAS OUT?!"

"Wow." Mad Dawg said, setting his spoon down. "Okay. First. Screw you. Second, I did _**NOTHING**_ to you aside from drug you. Wow, that came out wrong." Shaking his head, he decided to try and explain himself. "I knocked you out yeah, but I put you on my cot and went to sleep in the corner. If you think I'd EVER disrespect a woman, no matter how corrupt or attractive they were, or how hot I find them, you'd damn wrong. I knocked you out because I don't trust you. But I'd NEVER do something like that. Third, you're not even CLOSE to what I find attractive in a woman, hell. I don't see 'Beauty' as anything that matters in a woman! And fourth, you've drugged me HOW many times?"

Sombra stopped and breathed for a second, realizing she might've overreacted. Finally, she sighed and rubbed her face.

"Mios Dios, I'm sorry." She sighed shaking her head. "I'm on edge, I'm tired, I'm hungry…"

"You're scared." Mad Dawg stated, not looking at her.

"What?"

"You're scared of coming face-to-face with Virus again." Mad Dawg re-iterated, pouring a second bowl of cereal for himself, and continuing to eat it dry. "He's smarter, a better hacker, he nearly got you killed, you're scared of him. I don't blame you. To re-state that last point, he nearly got you killed last time you were near him."

"It… it's not that!" Sombra huffed, turning away. Mad Dawg munched on some cereal thinking about it until his eyes widened in realization.

"You… And _**HIM?!**_ " Mad Dawg half laughed, half exclaimed.

"Cada fibra de mi cuerpo quiere estrangularte…" Sombra grumbled something in Spanish before looking at the mutant teen, whose face was a mixture of laughing and amazement.

"Well, that would explain a lot…" Mad Dawg mused, pouring his third bowl of cereal.

"How so?" Sombra asked.

"Well, when you found out it was Virus, you didn't have a supervillain laugh and declare that he had lost. You knew who he was, and you knew his abilities, but you didn't know his weakness. Furthermore, he REALLY seemed to get under your skin, and even I haven't been able to do that… So, I'm guessing he was you're…. Ex… boyfriend?"

"No." Sombra groaned. "We were never like that. But I let my guard down for a moment, I felt like I found someone like me, and he used that against me."

"Hurts, don't it?" Mad Dawg snarked. "It ain't nice bein' blackmailed and used like a puppet."

Something about his response irked Sombra, it didn't show, but on the inside, that response felt… Painful.

"What's gotten into you?" She asked.

"It's called apathy." Mad Dawg replied, turning back to his Lucio-Oh's. "You did that shit for years, hurting and blackmailing people for your own gain. Now when it happens to you, you expect sympathy? I feel bad for what happened to you during the Omnic Crisis, but in this case, I'm all outta empathy."

Sombra didn't respond, surprised by the bluntness of Dawg's response. If she was honest with herself, he was right. But there was no way she was gonna admit to that.

"And what about you?" She retorted. "You've never used the sympathy card?"

"No." Mad Dawg shook his head. "I've used the apology card. I own up to my mistakes-"

"Then why are you running form Overwatch?" Sombra cut in.

"Why are you running from Talon?" Mad Dawg retorted.

Sombra frowned, annoyed she didn't have a response, and Mad Dawg knew he had won. The two didn't speak for a few moments, neither one wanting to respond, waiting for the other to respond.

"We're not gonna get anywhere If we keep fighting like this." Mad Dawg finally spoke up, deciding to end this conversation. "Once Virus is gone, we can go our separate ways."

Sombra nodded, agreeing. But then thought of something that was bugging her from the beginning of this mess she found herself trapped in.

"I've been meaning to ask this, you seem really calm with the plan to murder someone. Why is that?"

"I dunno." Mad Dawg shrugged. "Maybe it's because my anger towards him is at a point where killing him doesn't mean much to me. Or maybe at this point I've lived such a messed-up life that death doesn't mean much anymore. Or maybe it's because there's a little bit of Talon still in my mind…" He finished standing up and slinging his bag on. "We're out of cereal." He said, walking past Sombra and entering the other side room. Dumping his bag out, he discarded the magazines he carried, and decided he needed to gear up. Opening a box marked 'Hentai' he looked into his hidden gun stash. Digging for a moment, he pulled out an automatic shotgun, two pistols, and a grenade launcher. Digging deeper, he found a large pipe wrench and a baseball bat and some barbed wire. Looking at the two heavy weapons, he put them both back when he saw two tomahawks at the bottom. Smirking, he packed his weapons into his bag, including the things he built after buying some components from Firetank. Then returned to the main room where Sombra was giving him a sour look.

"Yeah, I know. I ate all the cereal." Mad Dawg rolled his eyes. "I'll buy you drive-thru, let's go."

"Where are we going?" Sombra asked as she followed Mad Dawg.

"Away from here." Mad Dawg stated. "Overwatch is probably on our trail by this point. We need to move, and by that, I mean I need to find finish cleaning up."

Exiting through the hidden entrance, Mad Dawg ignited the blowtorch he bought and welded the trapdoor shut, sealing the hidden base off. After that, he pushed the garbage bin back over the hidden trap door and headed back to where he stashed the truck he was using, all the while thinking about how everything seemed to go wrong so fast.

 _Meanwhile…_

"This is wrong." Genji stated crossly. Looking down from the rooftop he stood on, surveying the town below.

"I don't like this either love." Tracer replied, sadness in her voice. "But we need to find him if we're gonna help him."

"If we want to help him. They we need to leave him be." Genji countered.

"So, you're saying the correct course of action would be to stand aside and allow him to kill an innocent man?" Zenyatta asked, not to be sarcastic (Zen didn't know what that word meant) but more as an open-ended question.

"No master." Genji shook his head. "Allowing him to seek this path of murder is wrong, but our attempts to violently detain him are only making the situation worse. Something's wrong with Mad Dawg, and I believe he needs to find those answers before we can help him."

Tracer looked to Genji, shocked by his answer. She knew he and Zenyatta spent a lot of time in Nepal, training and helping Genji find peace, and she knew Zenyatta was wise, but she hadn't expected Genji to respond like that. Suddenly, a call came through the team comms.

"Any of you find anything?" Reindhardt asked, seeming tired.

"Nothing." Genji responded simply.

"It's all gone."

The trio seemed confused by the statement from the Crusader.

"What?" Tracer asked.

"His home. The train yard, the whole thing." Reinhardt said sadly. "It's all burned to the ground. There are Junker corpses as well… It's safe to assume he was attacked, but there's no sign of him anywhere."

"Okubyōmono no okubyōna musuko-tachi!" Genji shouted in anger, shocking everyone who heard it.

"You… alright love?"

"That was all he had!" Genji exclaimed, angered.

"Calm yourself Shimada." Reinhardt said, seeming somewhat angered himself. "We'll find those who did this… And we'll bring them to justice."

Mercy stared in shock at the mutilated remains of the Junker Queen that some of the operatives had found. Her torso was burned and had metal shrapnel going clean through it. A large jagged chunk of metal went clean through her eye, exiting the back. It was unclear if she had died from the metal, or the blood loss, or the fact that large chunks of the roof seemed to have fallen onto her.

"This wasn't Mad Dawg." Hanzo said, surveying the wreckage of the train yard. "He may have set the explosions off to destroy the place, but there was clearly a fight here."

"I believe we should assume that the Junkers were responsible for this." Mercy said, still somewhat in shock. "They must've gotten carried away…"

"Ziegler!" Winston called. "You need to see this!"

Making her way over, Winston was looking at a chunk of scrap metal from the roof, which was moved when they were trying to uncover who was buried. But there was something written on it. Clearly written in blood, were the words _Find Virus an' kill 'im_.

"The Queen must have written this…" Winston said, feeling somewhat sick.

"But why would she be writing about Virus?" Mercy asked, puzzled by the message.

The heroes went quiet, all of them considering the options as to why the Junker Queen would've written this with her own blood as her final message.

"Do you think, that this 'Virus' that Mad Dawg is after could have been behind this attack? Perhaps an employer of some sort?"

"Hmmm…" Winston mused, thinking it over. "Hanzo, I don't like asking this, but did your family ever order… um… Hits from someone outside of the clan?"

Hanzo gave Winston a puzzled look, then realized what he meant and his brow furrowed. While he hated admitting to it, he turned to the others.

"No." He shook his head. "We never used outside contracts."

"This doesn't make any sense…" Winston muttered.

"I'm starting to think there's more going on we understand." Hanzo commented. "Mad Dawg said he's after someone named Virus, correct?"

"Yes." Winston nodded.

"Why would Mad Dawg and the Junkers both want to find this Virus character? Mad Dawg wasn't a junker was he?"

"Unless you want to call him one because he lives in an old train yard, I wouldn't consider him one." Reindhardt shook his head as he entered the room, looking at the remains of the room. "Aye… What did they do? Why did they do this?"

"I'm starting to believe Virus hired the Junkers." Hanzo suddenly spoke up again. "Mad Dawg has his reasons for trying to find Mad Dawg, Virus must have some sort of secret he's trying to hide, perhaps something concerning Mad Dawg. Now that he knows he's after him, Virus is doing whatever he can to stop him. When the Junkers attacked, Mad Dawg escaped, and the queen died, so as her final instructions, they're turning on him."

"I'm still not fully aware of who this 'Virus' character is." Winston commented.

"He's a musician, similar to Lució. But from what Santos has told me, he's secretive, not many people have seen him outside of his concerts."

"…Why though? Why would Virus be after Mad Dawg, and him after Virus?" Mercy asked.

"At this point, it's anyone's guess." Hanzo said, then he began climbing the twisted and broken metal to try and get a better view, or maybe see if there was anything they missed. Kneeling on the roof, he looked out at the smoldering, blackened remains of the train yard. Sighing, he didn't see anything that would lead them in any direction to find Mad Dawg, then he noticed something on the roof. What looked like a dragon head, wiping some soot and dust away, he saw the Shimada dragon, both his and his brothers, spray painted on the roof, intertwined with one another. He wasn't sure how to react, on the one hand, it was a very well-done graffiti, but on the other hand, Hanzo felt guilty for context Mad Dawg may not know about, and he didn't want someone else he cared for to end up like his brother.

" _Perhaps wasting time thinking this over isn't the best way to go."_ He mused to himself, before resolving to find Mad Dawg and help him any way he could. With that, he began sliding down the roof to give any information to the others so he could help any way he could.

 _Meanwhile…_

"What makes you think he'll come here?" Reaper asked, annoyed.

"From what you overheard from Sombra, Mad Dawg is gonna bail once this is over, and he's probably destroying his old safe houses in order to cover his tracks." Lució replied, casting a slight glance over his shoulder. "If the last call you got was in Chicago, there's a chance he'll show up here."

"And if he doesn't?"

"Then we do it your way."

Lució wouldn't say this out loud, but the reason why he decided to try this safe house (which he didn't even know Mad Dawg had) was because a weird voice told him to, telling him where it was and that he and Sombra would be there today.

"Why do you care so much for him?" Reaper asked, after a few moments of silence. "He's not your family."

"That doesn't matter." Lució shook his head, before taking a drink. "The kid _has_ no family, he lives in a junkyard! Maybe it's partially sympathy for all the crap he's gone through, but more likely it's all the good he's done." The musician didn't bother turning to look back, his free hand resting near his sonic amplifier, should the Talon hitman decide to go on the offensive. "He does a lot of good outside of the missions you tried to kill him on. He's not a complete sociopath, he cares about people, even those who hate him." Pausing for a moment he added: "Maybe if you'd spend less time shooting at him you'd see that. We found him bloody and nearly dead in Dorado, and ever since, he's been doing everything he can to help anyone. Sure, sometimes he goes too far, but everyone makes mistakes. Morrison lost it recently and beat the crap out of him, I don't know why he'd do that, but I wanna find Mad Dawg before things get bad."

"Morrison's an idiot." Reaper said. "The implants he has made him unstable, volatile, his mind is degrading."

"Damn. Didn't know you and him got the same implants." Lució cut Reaper off. In Response, Reaper let out a low, aggressive growl and Lució knew he had to change the subject. "Do you think you could get in that window up there?" He said pointing up. "If you can get in there, there's a chance we could find something about where he's headed next."

Reaper grumbled something under his breath, but nodded. He wanted to find the files and get out of here, and if this would help speed this along, he'd be willing to help. Entering his wraith form, he passed through a broken window and re-materialized on the ground. Shooting one of his shotguns off to the side, the door opened, and Lució looked in.

"Really?" Was all he said.

"You wanted in, you're in." Reaper said in response, not looking back.

Walking in, Lució turned on a light switch and a few lights flickered for a moment then came on. Neon tube lights lit up the room, all of which were lined up one next to the other across the floor and up on the ceiling. As the two looked around, it seemed like no one had been here for a while. Reaper glanced around until he noticed something interesting, a bulletin board with pictures of the agents and string pointing to different places on maps. Written on them were things like "Trust?" or "Seems like an asshole…" or "Extra THICC!" but one stood out, there was a note with an arrow pointing to Mercy which read "Why does she seem so familiar?"

 _Click._

"I don't believe in coincidences, so why the hell are you here?" Came a familiar voice.

Even with a gun pointed to his head, Reaper turned around and came face-to-face with Mad Dawg. In response, he drew both his shotguns, eyes narrowing behind the mask.

"Where's the hard drive?" Reaper demanded, in his low tone.

"Why are you here?"

"Drop em' Reaper." Lució said, suddenly aiming his sonic amplifier at Reaper.

"Lució?"

"Hey Dawg." Lució said, looking over to Mad Dawg. "We're looking for you."

"What did I miss?" Sombra asked, aiming her machine pistol at Lució, which caused Mad Dawg to draw another gun and aim it at Sombra.

"You don't wanna do that."

"Whoa. Everyone just calm down." Lució said, getting everyone's attention. "Maybe we should just put em' down and talk this out."

"No damn way." Mad Dawg growled. "Not until _HE_ explains why he's here."

"If I spent less time shooting at him, I'd see that he's not that bad. You still stand by that?" Reaper said, looking over to Lució but not lowering his weapons.

"Hang on." Mad Dawg said, realizing what was going on. "You two…"

"We've been trying to find you two. Neither one of us like it, but we had to work together to find you two." Lució explained. "Unless we all calm the hell down, no one is gonna walk away from this alive."

"Alright. Fine." Mad Dawg nodded. "We all drop em'."

Slowly but surely, Mad Dawg, Sombra, Reaper and Lució all lowered their weapons, Mad Dawg and Reaper still glaring daggers at one another, while Lució and Sombra seemed relatively calm.

"You're music's awesome." Sombra said, looking to Lució. " _Sun and Sand_ is one of my favourites."

"Really?" Lució replied, surprised. "That's uh… That's awesome!"

"I'm only going to ask you one more time." Reaper scowled. "Where's the hard drive?"

"Hey Oliva!" Mad Dawg said, not turning around. "Where's the hard drive with all of Gabe's gay porn? Something tells me he hasn't had a good wa-"

 **BLAM!**

Lució and Sombra watched in shock as Mad Dawg was sent into a wall, a large bloody hole in his chest. Without a second thought, Lució blasted Reaper with the sonic amplifier, knocking him into a nearby fridge. In a moment of sheer stupidity, Lució jumped onto Reaper and began hitting him with in the face with his fists, then pulling the mask off and stumbling back in shock. Reaper yelled in anger and drew his shotgun and was about to fire when he felt a gun against his head.

"You want the hard drive, you drop the gun." Mad Dawg said weakly, his wound mostly healed. Reaper put his mask back on and dropped the shotgun. Standing up he pulled his hood back on and Sombra pulled the drive out from her jacket and Reaper aggressively snatched it form her.

"Why're you here?" Mad Dawg asked as he turned to Lució.

"What happened man?" Lució asked, suddenly seeming downcast. "Apparently Morrison went ballistic on you, you attacked most of the team, wounded them then just disappeared. Then your home is destroyed, and we find the corpse of the Junker Queen there! What's going on?!"

"What?" Reaper said, surprised to hear the bit about the Junker Queen.

"Virus sent them after me." Mad Dawg stated. "He wants me for some reason," Sombra seemed like she wanted to say something, but a quick glance silenced her.

"Start from the beginning." Lució stated, before looking over to see Sombra and Reaper, he frowned for a second then looked back to Mad Dawg. "Okay, maybe later."

"The less you know the safer you'll be." Mad Dawg replied, not seeming himself. "You need to go."

"I'm not gonna do that." Lució stated. "I honestly hoped you'd be smarter than that."

"Cruz, I'm done." Mad Dawg said, slashing his hand through the air. "I'm can't be part of Overwatch anymore."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Lució exclaimed, exasperated.

"It's hard to explain."

"I don't find that hard to believe. The corpses at your home, it all burned to the ground, you and her." He finished pointing over his shoulder to Sombra. "But Dawg, I found common ground with that guy." He said pointing to Reaper. "So, after all the crap I've done to find you, I really couldn't care less about how 'complicated' it is. What's going on?"

Mad Dawg frowned, then sighed slightly.

"I don't know why, but Virus is after me." Mad Dawg said, looking to everyone in the room. "He wants me dead, so I'm fighting back. He sent the Junkers after me… and at this point, I'm just trying to find him and shut this shit down."

"Okay…" Lució breathed, nodding in understanding. "And why's _she_ here?"

"I ran into her, and she's able to find him, believe me, you have better odds of getting Gabe and Jack to reconcile than finding Virus without help." Mad Dawg stated plainly.

"And what does she want from all this?"

"I dunno. She has a vendetta against him as well."

The room went silent until Lució frowned at him again.

"Y'know Dawg… You're a great friend, but a terrible liar." He stated, seeing through the lies Mad Dawg was telling him.

"Hey, Dawg. Mind if we make sure the files are all on the drive still?" Sombra suddenly spoke up, getting the duos attention. Mad Dawg shrugged, as if to say _I don't care._ "C'mon Reaper."

Reaper (who had been uncharacteristically silent, almost empathetic) looked over to Sombra and nodded, following her into another room. Leaving the two alone. Lució looked back to Mad Dawg then was taken aback when he saw tears in Mad Dawg's eyes.

"Lució… I'm… I'm.. I'm so sorry." He tried to say, his breath hitching at almost every word. "I… I don't know how to explain this… or where to start…"

"Why did Morrison attack you?" Lució calmly asked, now feeling saddened by the demeanor of his friend.

"Because…" He shook his head then said. "Because of all this. I've been digging into my past, some stuff I didn't know, and it led me to some dark places. I went behind their back to this old mansion, and it turned out that it was Junker controlled, I had to fight my way out and I killed a lot of people. Commander Morrison kept telling me to let it go, but eventually I decided that this was more important."

"Okay." Lució nodded. "But why is Virus after you?"

 _Crap._ Mad Dawg thought, on the verge of panic pants wetting. _Not helping._ But he found himself uncertain of what to do. _Should I tell him?_

"I don't know." He finally lied, sighing heavily. And Lució seemed to believe him.

"Anything else?" He calmly asked.

"I'm…" Mad Dawg began, then stopped.

"Dawg. I'm your friend." Lució said reassuringly, putting his hand on his shoulder. "You can trust me, I'm on break from Overwatch for a while as I work on some new music. I won't tell anyone."

"I'm not human."

Lució was silent, his face not giving Mad Dawg any ideas as to what he could be thinking about.

"Makes sense." He nodded.

"You… you knew?" Mad Dawg quietly asked, wiping some tears form his eyes.

"A few of us had some ideas. It mainly came from how you healed form seemingly anything, and how you'd randomly appear all over the place, but we never thought too much of it. Hell, Efi thought you were some kinda superhero."

"Well, I am a mutant." Mad Dawg quietly said. "I… I'm…"

"I know Dawg." Lució quietly said. "You don't have to say it."

"What?!"

"Well, I put the pieces together, and I think I know what's going on. You did something to someone, and they've hired Virus to come after you." He stated matter-of-factly.

 _Close enough._ Mad Dawg thought before nodding. "Yeah."

"So, you find Virus, then what?"

"I get him off my back." Mad Dawg replied.

"Then?"

Mad Dawg looked down not looking forward to explain this to Lució especially.

"I leave. For good." He said, looking up at the musician. "None of you will ever see me again."

Lució fidgeted slightly, then hugged Mad dawg, silently crying himself.

"I don't wanna let you do this… But I know I have no choice." He said. "Take care Dawg."

"Wait!" Mad Dawg, genuinely surprised. "You don't have more questions?!"

"I do, but they don't matter." He shrugged. "As long as you're gonna be okay. That's all that matters."

Mad Dawg smiled, and he and Lució fist bumped as Sombra and Reaper walked back in.

"So, the next step is to find Virus." Sombra stated. "I think we have an idea of where he is."

"I have his number." Lució offered.

"Hm." Mad Dawg mused. "Let me call him."

Opening his phone, Mad Dawg entered Virus' number into one of his burner phones and Sombra hacked the phone to triangulate the signal. After a few rings, the other end answered.

"Uh… Who is this?"

"Hey Virus! Remember me?" Mad Dawg said loudly with a huge smirk.

"WHAT THE HELL." Virus shouted. "HOW ARE YOU ALIVE?! I SENT THE GODDAMN JUNKER QUEEN AND HER ELITE FORCE AND YOU'RE STILL ALIVE?! HOW?!"

"Because f**k you, that's how." Mad Dawg grinned.

"You inhuman pile of test tube waste! You don't deserve the breath you take!"

Giving a glance over to Sombra who nodded that she had his location, and Mad Dawg decided to end this call.

"And that thirteen-year-old you met at your concert didn't deserve… Well, you know. See ya soon."

Hanging up, Sombra showed him the location she had found and Mad Dawg nodded. Knowing there was one last obstacle to deal with, he turned to Reaper.

"When this is over, I won't come within 50 miles of you or your idiot band of wannabe X-Men villains, if I do that, can I expect you to leave me alone?"

"Why should we?" Reaper asked in his trademark dark tone, arms crossed.

"Because I know where your bases are, and I'm not above sending Overwatch a message telling them where all your hidden bases are."

Reaper growled slightly, thinking over the threat/deal.

"Let him go." Akande suddenly said over his communication device. "He's not of use to us, and he's proved himself strong enough to be a competent threat. I'll deal with him myself."

"Fine." Reaper growled. "But you ever show near our operations again, and everyone you care for will die."

"That's fair." Mad Dawg nodded, a slight frown on his face.

"You have a lot to answer for." Reaper said to Sombra before wraiting away with the drive.

"Hopefully we'll meet again Dawg." Lució said with a sad smile, before turning and leaving. Closing the remains of the broken door behind him. Thinking to himself _Well, I guess this is how it has to be. With that phone call, we could call Overwatch and take Virus down… But it seems like Mad Dawg has a lot of bad blood…I guess the best thing to do is let him deal with this has own way._

"He's heading out ain'he?"

Spinning around, Lució was genuinely shocked to see McCree leaning against the car he bought, lighting a cigar before exhaling.

"What are you doing here?" Lució asked nervously.

"I should ask you the same thing." McCree replied. "Everyone's looking for Dawg, I remember seeing a map he had with all his hidden homes marked on it… Thought I'd check it out, then I saw you."

"Leave him be." Lució stated defensively. "He's been through-"

"Seriously?" McCree said, cutting Lució off, genuinely amused. "I've been in this longer than you. All this started when they kidnapped **me**. I was there when the Junkers attacked. If you think I'm gonna call this in, I'm not. I know what the kid's been through, and I'm in to help him any way I can. As for you, you should get outta here before the others show up." He said, pointing down the road. "They'll be here soon." Lució nodded and got into the car and drove off. Unsure of where he was heading.

Meanwhile, Mad Dawg and Sombra had left though a hidden entrance and were driving to an abandoned subway system connected to a ware house where Virus was holed up.

"So he's hidden in the old ware house." Sombra stated. "It won't be easy to get to him."

"I gotta be prepared for anything." Mad Dawg muttered.

"You mean _WE_ need to be prepared." Sombra stated.

"I've already put you through too much as it is." Mad Dawg shook his head. "And while I need your help, I don't expect it."

"If we're being honest, I'm only alive because of you." Sombra said, in a reassuring tone, and Mad Dawg wasn't sure if she was being honest or not. "I'm here till the end, your gonna need my help if you wanna get to him."

Mad Dawg nodded and kept driving. About an hour later, they pulled into an abandoned parking lot and looked down abandoned train tracks leading into a dark tunnel. A few heavily armed humans and Omnics were patrolling the area.

Mad Dawg sighed, a feeling of dread crawling down his spine.

 _This is it._ He thought. _This. Is where it ends._

 **A.N. Done. Wow, I've been gone for a bit. Sorry about that. Things are getting intense, and next chapter is the 25** **th** **chapter, and the finale of** _ **Bad Blood**_ **, so make sure you're following so you don't miss the conclusion! And don't worry, after the conclusion, things will get lighter again. But believe me, you don't wanna miss the next chapter.**


	25. Bad Blood Part IX

"Those are Talon agents…" Sombra whispered in shock.

"Impossible." Akande said, just as surprised as her.

"Holy crap." Mad Dawg said, his eyes widening. "Virus had this whole thing planned! Don't you get it!? He played _everyone!_ "

"How?" Sombra asked, genuinely confused. She didn't like this, she usually could tell what was happening with someone's plan, but Virus was out of his mind. His plan made no sense.

"When he was in your base, there's a good chance he didn't know I was still around, so he was trying to steal your stuff, then at some point he found out I'm alive, so then he used what he stole from you, probably access codes or something, to forge orders."

"To the Junkers and to these guys!" Sombra finished Mad Dawg's thought, realizing what this all meant. She HADN'T been selling their info behind their back! Virus most definitely had a back door into their system!

 _Akande, you owe me a MASSIVE apology._ She seethed internally.

"I believe is misjudged you…" She heard Akande say, somewhat awkwardly.

"No shit." She muttered under her breath.

"Hey, is Doomfoot listening?" Mad Dawg said, turning to Sombra. "If he is, tell him to tell Reaper I said to eat a big bag of floppy dicks."

Sombra did her best to try not to laugh, while Doomfist was still puzzled as to how Mad Dawg was somehow able to pick up on their conversations, while Widowmaker groaned in disgust.

"Okay, here's the plan." Mad Dawg said, suddenly getting serious. "I'll go down there and deal with them, you try and find a back-way in."

"What? That's insane!" Sombra replied. "They'll kill you!"

"One, healing factor. Two, Virus wants to watch me die, I doubt he'd make it impossible to at least get in. Three, it's probably the last thing he'd expect."

"That… Makes sense." Sombra said, giving an impressed look to Mad Dawg, who smirked in response.

"I have Moria's intellect, just not in the way one might expect, and I have an extreme amount of tenacity... Or maybe I'm a freaking idiot." Pulling some needles out he grinned. "That and I've got some adrenaline. Y'know. For 'medicinal' purposes."

Sombra exhaled slightly, seeming nervous.

"Hey." Mad Dawg said, lifting her chin up. "Don't forget. He called you a washed-up hacker whore. Get in there and make him regret ever saying that. Make him regret ever trying to stab you in the back."

Sombra nodded.

"Okay. Let's do this."

Mad Dawg jumped over the railing and slid down the concrete slope before rolling behind a blocker. Drawing his crossbow, he peeked over the edge and saw an Omnic leaning against the wall, taking aim, Mad Dawg held his breath and pulled the trigger. The bolt went through the Omnic's head and he fell to the ground dead. Running forward, Mad Dawg dragged the body into some nearby bushes, concealing it with rocks and grass.

 _Hey dude?_

Yeah?

 _Whatever happens, I want to let you know. Thanks dude, you've been a friend, thanks for everything._

Now with a sense of warmth, knowing that even if he died, he'd die having one friend, Mad Dawg lay low as he slunk towards the tunnels, his breathing slow and very quiet, his heart beating rapidly. As he ducked behind a large container, he heard two of the agents talking, causing him to freeze.

"So, he's really gonna be here?" A male voice asked.

"The commander thinks so." A female voice replied.

"Thinks so? What's the point of being here if we don't know that he's gonna be here?"

"Look, I don't like this either. Apparently, this kid is some kinda freak of nature, but if you want to explain to the Reaper why we weren't present when the number one target came through here and we let him go, feel free."

"…Uh, nah. I think we'll wait here."

"Good."

"Agh. I gotta pee."

Looking around from his hiding space, Mad Dawg saw the woman was looking away, while the man was peeing. Casually standing up, Mad Dawg walked over to the bush beside where the agent was peeing and started peeing as well. Neither one looked at one another, (article thirty-three of the _Bro Code_ ).

"Hey." Mad Dawg finally said.

"Yo." The Agent nodded, still looking forward.

"Did you see the game last night?"

"Huston Outlaws against the Florida Mayhem? Yeah, real nail biter."

"I know, right? Down to the wire!"

"Yeah. But that comeback was awesome. I stated at the beginning of the season that the Outlaws were gonna kick ass this year. I'm glad I predicted right." The Agent said.

"I had a good feeling about them, my money is still on Dynasty."

"You're one of _those_ guys? Boo!"

"No one thinks that Fusion is any good." The female agent grumbled. "But look at their team! Their strategy is head and shoulders above both your teams!"

"Just because you have a plan, doesn't' mean it'll work." The other agent retorted.

Mad Dawg laughed and looked down, surprised he was still peeing.

"So… Waiting for Mad Dawg?"

"Yup."

"Man. Why's everyone looking for me?" Mad Dawg asked aloud.

The two agents looked over and finally saw who was next to them and gasped in shock before reaching for their weapons, but Mad Dawg drew his crossbow and fired a bolt, going through the male agent's head and getting stuck in the female's forehead.

"Damn." Mad Dawg said, grabbing the bolt. Suddenly realizing he needed to hide. He jumped over a concrete barrier, suddenly hearing someone yell:

"HE'S HERE! TAKE HIM OUT!"

As the bullets started flying, Mad Dawg laughed to himself as he re-loaded his cross bow. Rolling out, Mad Dawg fired at an agent, who screamed in pain as the bolt went into his shoulder. One threw a grenade at him and Mad Dawg shot it mid-flight with his handgun and it exploded, using the explosion as cover, he ran towards the train car, shooting any agent who got in his path. He jumped onto a wall and launched himself off of it, landing on an Omnic before jabbing a taser into its neck, knocking it out.

"Hey! You!" Mad Dawg said, looking at the reader. "What do you think? Mercy of death?"

 **For Mercy for all the hapless goons, Call 1-800-555-KILL**

 **For Death for all the hapless goons, Call 1-800-555-SAVE**

 **Each call is 35$, votes will be tallied and the winner will be announced in the 89** **th** **chapter. Now, back to the story.**

"Screw it." Mad Dawg muttered, running and jumping off of a concrete wall, firing his crossbow mid-air. Striking an agent directly in one eye, making him scream in pain and fall to the ground. Body slamming onto another agent he grabbed a knife and jabbed it into the agent's helmet. He gurgled slightly and then stopped, Mad Dawg took a few bullets to the back and growled in pain. Running towards the agent he shot in mid-air, he ripped the arrow (and the goons eye) out and then spun it behind him and drove it into another agent's torso, then ripped it out then jabbed it into the agent's throat. Continuing his fight forwards, he saw an agent aim at him and stomped on a plank of wood lying on a rail, breaking the _Bro Code_ as the plank slammed into the agent's crotch, making him drop his weapon and moan in pain. Mad Dawg shoved his knife through his skull, only for the knife to break when he ripped it out. By now, the number of agents were dwindling. He grabbed the two revolvers he brought and decided to do this 'The McCree Way'. He began firing at several of the agents, managing to take down two. The agents however, seemed to develop a plan, they all began to surround him and aimed their weapons.

"I'm gonna sleep in your bloody carcasses tonight!" Mad Dawg shouted, before firing his guns.

 _ **BRADDABRADDABRADDABRADDA**_ **!**

Mad Dawg kept walking through the storm of bullets, thankfully, he had strapped on some armor before starting this attack. However, the bullets still tore across his arms and a few hit his shoulders. But after he fired his shots, the agents all dropped to the ground dead. Mad Dawg grabbed a pair of pliers and groaned in pain as he ripped the bullets from his skin. As his wounds closed, he picked up one of the bullets and inspected it.

 _No toxins… Good._ Mad Dawg thought to himself. Making his way towards the box car, Mad Dawg saw a spray-painted arrow with _Get In Freak_ written on the door. Slowly checking the car for agents or traps, Mad Dawg slowly got in, and the door closed behind him. The car began moving as Mad Dawg cracked a glow stick, and the car had a pale purple tint to it as he waited for the door to open. Looking around, he saw words spray painted on the walls; _Murderer, Freak, Mutant, Killer, Talon Experiment, Bastard_ and so on. Mad Dawg grit his teeth and looked down. His phone vibrated and he answered it, unsure of who it was but ready for anything.

"Hey, Mad Dawg?" Sombra's voice came from the other end. "I found a back door. I'll see you inside."

"Alright." Mad Dawg nodded. "And Olivia? If it hits the fan in there, I want you to run. Forget about me, get out and get to Dorado."

"What?" Sombra said, genuinely confused. "Dorado? Why there? Do you need me to delete your browser history or something?"

"It's…" Mad Dawg sighed before taking on a much more serious tone. "Virus knows you're working with me. If I die, he'll turn his attention to you."

"So? I've been fine for the past while, there's no possible way he could find me." Sombra almost scoffed at the thought of Virus being able to track her down.

"Yeah. He won't be able to find you, but he could find Alejandra."

"Hijo de puta!" Sombra shouted, making Mad Dawg wince. "You really think he'd do that?!"

"You saw the psycho circus he set up in King's Row, he knew where and when to call us a few chapters ago, he might have sent the Junkers after us. So, what makes you think he wouldn't? From what I've seen, he'll do anything to hurt someone."

There was silence on the other side, and the box car began to slow. Mad Dawg reached for a gun and hid to the side of the door waiting for it to open.

"Doggo?" Sombra finally asked. "If… for some reason, Alejandra is in here, what would you do?"

"The hell do you mean by that?" Mad Dawg growled, eyes narrowing. "Do you know something about this? Something you should tell me if you want to live through this?" '

"No!" Sombra snapped. "I care about her! If what you said is true, she might be in danger! If she is, what would you do?"

"Dunno." Mad Dawg honestly replied. "Not really my issue." Before hanging up the phone.

The door opened and Mad Dawg left the box car, finding himself in a very narrow hallway covered in graffiti. When he reached the end, he looked out over a large open room, shipping containers stacked on one another. The room was split into two colours, on the left, a bright blue seemed to light the room, while on the right a bright blood-like red lit the room. Agents in body armor were walking all over the room, hanging from the ceiling was the word 'Savior' in blue and 'Slayer' in red. Crosses seemed to light up to the beat of a techno-edm song that played all throughout the building. On the left side, blue lights flashed to the song, on the right, red lights flashed. A graffiti image of Virus' logo was painted on a banner on the 'Savior' side, while a graphic of a wolf's skull with blood-red eyes, and two knifes behind it was painted on the 'Slayer' side. Two separate paths seemed to be made with tube lights across the floor, both of which went around the room, ending at the back of the room with a door with Virus' logo spray painted on it.

 _Subtle._ Mad Dawg internally mused. He then checked what he had in his bag.

-Crossbow

-15 Bolts

-Two Revolvers

-18 Handgun Bullets

-Blowtorch

-Taser

-Phone

-3 Cans of Mountain Dew

-Double Barrel Shottie

-22 Shotgun ammo

-2 Tomahawks

-4 Panther Protein Bars

 _Okay, think this through._ Mad Dawg thought, looking out over the room. _You can fight through it all, probably get really badly damaged, or you can sneak your way through this._

"MD we've got an issue." Sombra said, her voice suddenly coming through his phone.

"What?"

"The door's locked. I can't get you through." Sombra said, clearly annoyed that this security was stronger than her abilities. "You'll need to find which of these idiots has the code. Virus split it into two."

"Are these guys Talon agents?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Yeah." Sombra replied. "Some of them are. The others are mercenaries for hire, and I think some of them are gang members. Go nuts."

"Alright. I'll call you when I get the codes."

Sliding down a nearby ladder, Mad Dawg ran up behind the first random loser he saw and swung his tomahawk into the side of his neck. The man gurgled and eventually dropped to the ground dead. Checking for a code, Mad Dawg didn't find one.

 _Of course._ He internally grumbled.

As he hid next to a crate, he overheard two Talon agents talking.

"Did you hear he's coming?" One asked.

"What?! Why's he coming here?! Aren't we doing the job he gave us?" The other replied, shocked and surprised.

"Yeah. My guess is he's coming to help or something. Y'know, make sure it's done right."

"Ah."

 _Someone else is coming?_ Mad Dawg thought. _Who? Oh… Oh, crap… Wait a sec… Does that mean that Sombra…_ Before he could continue his train of thought, Virus' voice filled the room.

"Hey aSsHolEs!" Virus' distorted voice suddenly came on over the speaker system. "He'S in there WiTH yoU!"

Staying in his hiding spot beside one of the shipping containers, Mad Dawg switched to his double barrel shotgun and waited, one of the mercs walked around the corner and Mad Dawg fired up, the thugs helmet becoming a bowl for human tomato soup. A few more ran over, weapons drawn and Mad Dawg began blasting them. The shotgun shells impacted their chests, but it didn't kill them.

 _STUPID!_ Mad Dawg internally cursed himself. _THEY HAVE ARMOR DUMBASS!_

Reloading quickly, Mad Dawg fired two more shots, this time at their helmets and one of them went down. Knowing his weapons would be useless against them, Mad Dawg ran as the bullets started flying. Grabbing his crossbow, Mad Dawg noticed that around the joints the armor didn't protect it as much… Perhaps and opening… Testing his theory, he fired a bolt at one of the thugs, who sparked when it hit.

 _Okay, it works._ Mad Dawg mentally confirmed his idea. _But he's an Omnic._

Stealing another quick glance, Mad Dawg saw three of the thugs together. One their belts were grenades. Mad Dawg's eyes narrowed as he held his breath and aimed.

 **BOOM!**

His shot found its mark, and three of the thugs in the room were blown to kingdom come. The explosion and their screams caused a distraction, enough for Mad Dawg to run up and drive his tomahawks into another merc's throat. Kicking another one in the back of the leg, Mad Dawg yanked the helmet off of the thug's head and taser him directly on the forehead, the Omnic jittered and eventually shut down. Pausing for breath, several bullets hit the container nearby and Mad Dawg dropped to the ground and rolled. Getting up, he saw a large thug wearing complete body armor with no chinks that were discernable, carrying a huge machine gun.

"END OF THE LIKE KID." He shouted. In response, Mad Dawg fired six revolver shots at his head and neck, to no effect.

"Crap." Mad Dawg cursed, realizing he just wasted about half of his ammo.

Slipping away, Mad Dawg ran around the remaining titan and climbed up on a container, he then jumped and held onto the rafters and waited. Readying his taser, he jumped, landing on the titan's back and unleashing the full force of the taser. The titan yelled in surprise and annoyance, but then grabbed Mad Dawg and threw him into a container. Knowing he had to think of a better strategy, Mad Dawg got up and began to run. He yelled in pain as several bullets tore through his leg, causing him to fall down and slide across the ground.

"That was almost too easy." The thug who shot him said, walking towards him. "I was expecting more of a fight from you."

Mad Dawg groaned, trying to focus his energy on getting his leg healed. Looking around, he saw his crossbow and bag was out of reach, he had his gun, opening it, he had one bullet left in the chamber. He looked up and then back at the thug.

"Still, I ain't complaining." The thug continued. "For the amount, the boss is paying us, you could've been a wild animal for all I care, what matters is your down. And we're about to make it big." He finished, picking up a weird-looking collar. As he opened it, Mad Dawg saw spikes on the inside.

"Cool story bro. Tell it to the devil." Mad Dawg groaned. Then fired a shot upwards. There was a loud groan as a chain broke and the thug looked up to see one of the crosses coming down towards him.

"Oh fu-"

 **CRASH!**

With a tremendous sound, the cross came down, sparks and glass flying everywhere, crushing the last remaining thug underneath it.

"Agh… hah… okay…" Mad Dawg gasped for breath, forcing himself onto his leg, which was still weak, he staggered over to the titan. Taking his security card, he searched for a minute for the other. Finally finding it he called Sombra.

"Found em'." He sighed.

"You okay?" Sombra asked.

"I'll survive, but you need to be careful. These guys are nuts."

"Sounds like the idiots I work with." She muttered, unlocking the door through a security camera.

"I've been meaning to ask, why'd you join Talon?"

"Really?" Sombra groaned. "You're asking this NOW?"

"Bad time?"

"No duh."

Running down another hallway, Mad Dawg looked at the walls and a huge wave of guilt came over him. Virus had taped all the newspaper articles about the Omnic Blackout on the wall, he didn't want Mad Dawg to _ever_ forget.

"You have no idea what it was like." Virus' voice came throughout the halls, not in it's typical distorted tone. "Coming home one day and finding my adoptive parents dead on the floor, electrocuted! Having to watch as doctors covered my sister's corpse and carried her off! You don't know what it's like to lose family!"

"That's where your wrong Virus…" Mad Dawg growled. I just had to lose mine to protect them…"

Meanwhile, Sombra was quietly making her way down a hallway. The door she entered almost immediately locked afterwards. Virus must've planned that too… She didn't like this, she had no control. She had no choice but to play Virus' game. Thankfully, she was able to see what was happening through the security cameras, but now Mad Dawg wasn't in a room with any, and she needed to find him. Entering her stealth mode, she walked by some cameras, and frowned when they followed her. Virus knew she was there, somewhat. Rounding the corner, she froze when she caught a glimpse of someone entering through a door, she was about to call out to him, but she wasn't sure if it was who she thought it was. And right here, wasn't the right place to make a mistake. Elsewhere in the building, Mad Dawg reached the end of the hall, and when he opened the door to the next room, he nearly puked.

Alejandra was in the centre of the room, trapped in a metal cage, seeming like she hadn't eaten in days.

"HOLY SHIT, ALEJANDRA!" Mad Dawg yelled, running over to the cage. "Kid! Wake up!"

"Ugh…" She groaned weakly, clearly starving.

"SOMBRA! WHERE ARE YOU!?" Mad Dawg shouted into his phone, entering near panic mode. "Alejandra's here! Virus' done something to her! Where are you!?"

There was a loud banging on a door nearby, and Mad Dawg saw Sombra, who seemed to be on the verge of tears, while Virus' insane laughter filled the room.

"sO! ThErE is sOmEOne yOu CarE foR!" He laughed. "I think yoUR gorWIng aS a HUMAn, frEAK! If YoU WaNT to saVE heR, yoU must Do whaT cOMes naturally… SHED BloOd."

A large knife and a large cup appeared on a table next to the cage.

"FiLL the cUP and She gOEs fReE, Or, wALK aWaY lIKE yoU DO frOM YouR prOBLeMS."

Looking over to the far side of the room, another door opened. Suddenly, an audio recording played, and both Mad Dawg and Sombra froze.

" _If… for some reason, Alejandra is in here, what would you do?"_

" _Dunno. Not really my issue."_

Had Virus been listening in on their conversations?! For how long?! Did this mean he knew what their plan was?! Shaking his head, Mad Dawg decided to focus on the current problem as he looked at the cup, then to Sombra, then to Alejandra. Thinking it all over. If he left, Virus would probably kill her. If she died, that'd be another death on his hands, and he'd probably make another enemy. Suddenly, he heard a metallic whirring, and two long metal blades began entering wither side of the cage. Now he knew that If he didn't do something fast, Alejandra _was_ going to die. She was too weak to scream for help, but he saw the fear in her eyes, the fear of dying. Mad Dawg knew it well.

 _And I'm not gonna let an innocent girl die! Not again!_ He internally shouted. _How? How the hell can I get enough blood out without killing me in that short ti-_

 _Adrenaline._

Taking one of the needles out, Mad Dawg injected a very small amount of it into his veins. His heart suddenly kicked into overtime, beating so fast he thought it might smash through his ribs, but right now, he couldn't care less. Alejandra weakly looked up and saw Mad Dawg.

"You…" She whimpered.

"Don't talk kid. And don't watch." Mad Dawg said, eyes bloodshot.

Taking a deep breath, Mad Dawg took the knife and made a long, deep cut across his chest, yelling in pain as he dug the serrated blade into his chest and cut himself open. Stumbling to grab the cup, he began filling the glass with his own blood, groaning in pain as he had to keep his knife in his chest so his wound wouldn't close. Falling to his knees, beginning to feel dizzy, he kept filling the glass. He could hear Alejandra whimper, but to Mad Dawg, it was a scream, a scream that could be her last. That thought seemed to increase the adrenaline's potency and he filled the glass even faster. Finally, he ripped the knife out of his chest and poured the blood into the hole, the two blades stopped inches from Alejandra's face, and slowly retracted. Things were silent, then there was a loud buzz, and the cage door and door Sombra was trapped behind opened. She ran forward and picked Alejandra up out of the cage, holding her close, trying to see if she was okay.

"Do you have anything to eat?!" Sombra asked, any veil of control she had was gone, she was terrified. Mad Dawg paused for a moment, the adrenaline still in his body, working hard to keep his body together. After a few more moments, he blinked, coming back to reality. But Mad Dawg's question from earlier was answered. Sombra wasn't setting him up.

"The hell just happened?" He asked, looking around confused.

"Mad Dawg! She needs something!" Sombra yelled, tears staining her face.

"Hang on!" Mad Dawg said, digging through his bad. Finally, he found a can of Mountain Dew and a Panther Protein Bar. "Give her these."

Alejandra weakly ate part of the bar and took a sip from the drink. From the look of it, she wasn't physically hurt, but who knew how long it had been since she last ate.

"Kid. Kid." Mad Dawg said, waving a hand in front of Alejandra's face. "Can you hear me?"

"You… you killed them." She whimpered, suddenly burying her face into Sombra's chest. "You're a monster!"

Mad Dawg frowned at the reaction but looked to Sombra nonetheless.

"Get her out of here." He said, reloading his shotgun. "I'll deal with Virus."

"No." Sombra replied, standing up. "If I leave, you won't be able to deal with the security systems."

"Aaaaannnndddddddd what do we do with her?" Mad Dawg said, pointing to the terrified Alejandra who was taking small bites out of the protein bar.

"I…we…"

"We're NOT Taking her with us." Mad Dawg said crossly. Slashing both hands through the air, as if they matter was settled beyond a doubt.

"So, what do we do?"

Thinking for a minute, Mad Dawg looked around, then saw a small box in the corner. Walking over to it, he opened the lid and motioned for Sombra to come over.

"Put her in here."

Sombra stared at him in disbelief.

"No!" She exclaimed, holding the small girl closer.

"Look, it's hid her like you hide a body in _Hitman_ or it's probably get her killed." Mad Dawg said flatly. Sombra looked back and forth for a moment, then looked down at Alejandra.

"Alejandra? I promise we'll come back." Sombra said calmly, before setting her into the box and closing the lid, giving it a very troubled look the entire time. Only to hear a door slam shut. Looking up, she saw the door closed with Mad Dawg looking into the room. Running in anger over to the door, she banged on the window, but saw Mad Dawg seemed sad.

"I'm sorry." He said, shaking his head. "I have to do this alone."

"Dawg, you'll die!" She shouted. "You need my help!"

"So does she." Mad Dawg replied. And with that, Mad Dawg turned and ran down the hall, leaving Sombra behind.

Keeping his shotgun close, Mad Dawg slowly opened a door and looked around, there was nothing in the room but a single light over a bulletin board. Slowly walking towards it, his eyes widened and a chill ran down his spine. All over the board were pictures of Overwatch agents, held in place by knives with their eyes either scratched out or crossed out with red markings.

"OnCE YouR gONE… THey Will dIE as wEll!" Virus' voice came throughout the pa system again. "MaYBe Lena FirST? oR EMilY? MaYbe Hana?"

Suddenly, a deafeningly loud base began pounding through the room. Mad Dawg dropped to the ground and yelled in pain. His head was pounding form the base. Picking himself up he ran for a door and smashed through it, Virus' laughter echoing all throughout the room.

 _I need to shut this off!_ He thought. _If this keeps up… Well, I don't know what's gonna happen!_

Seeing a large fuse box connected to a speaker, gritting his teeth, he fired his shotgun at it. The fuse box sparked, and the speaker fizzled out. Pausing for a moment, Mad Dawg groaned in pain. His head still banging harder than when he and Marcus decided to pull an all-nighter to attempt to unlock the _Bladder of Steel_ Trophy on _Rock Band 2_ with the volume cranked all the way up. Shaking his head, he noticed he was almost out of shotgun shells.

"Damn it Virus…" He growled. "Where are you?"

Walking into the next room, Mad Dawg looked around, there were no cages, that was good. But it seemed empty, too empty. Walking towards the centre of the room, Virus' voice came on the PA once again, but this time, there wasn't any distortion.

"I don't understand you." His voice came. "Why choose to re-appear now? After all this time, I would've been fine if you had stayed in hiding. Something tells me this is what you wanted, even if you don't remember what happened back then. The terror, the pain, the confusion, we were all asking if we did something wrong. You tried to buy your forgiveness. Now, I'm offering you one more chance." Suddenly, a light above a door off to the side light up, a bag hanging on a hook next to it. "In the bag, you'll find everything you need to start a new life, take it and disappear for good. I'll leave you alone."

Mad Dawg slowly walked over to the door, reaching for the bag. Considering it. Leave and never return? That was his plan all along… This seemed like the easiest solution, while he probably wouldn't admit to it, Mad Dawg was pretty sure Virus had some sort of mental issue, possibly schizophrenia, when the mask went on, 'Virus' became the psycho who sent hit men after him, who threatened his friends, who kidnapped and starved a young girl, who…

"Hell no." Mad Dawg said, his eyes narrowing dangerously, suddenly realizing that he couldn't just let this go. Not just because of the bad blood between Virus and himself, but also because his friends would probably be next. "He started this, I'm finishing it. This is one problem I'm not walking away form."

"EvEN nOW. You'Re tOO IdIOTic ToO sEE EVERyWHere yOU gO. AnyOnE yOu caRE foR wILL DIE!" Virus shouted, distortion and anger returned. "YoU'RE A fREaK! I! aM! GOD!"

After saying that, large doors in the room opened, and at least two dozen agents entered. Some were Titans, and all were wearing armor. Cocking his shotgun, Mad Dawg fired at the first one who ran at him, blasting him back with a large hole in the armor. He wasn't dead, but it bought him a few precious seconds. Suddenly, all the mercenaries in the room charged at him at once, two of them came from behind and hit him in the back of the head, another punched him in the gut, followed up by another slugging him in the jaw. They swarmed him and began beating him aggressively, Mad Dawg felt his teeth coming loose and his nose was definitely broken. Mad Dawg struggled, but instead of attacking one at a time, they were all attacking simulationusly. There was no way he could fight them all off, even with his healing factor working overtime, Mad Dawg had a feeling this was gonna suck… Suddenly, out of nowhere, he heard a familiar voice.

"Time to die assholes!"

One of the thug's heads suddenly had a bullet hole in it, they all briefly stopped to see who was shooting at them.

"McCree?" Mad Dawg whispered hoarsely.

Punching another merc in the face, McCree fired off a few more shots, making some of the mercs recoil in pain. All the while still keeping his cigar in his mouth.

"You better have a damn good reason for being in the middle of all this." McCree stated, looking down at Mad Dawg, deadly serious.

The Titan turned his attention to the cowboy and picked up his weapon, McCree fanned the hammer, and the Titan seemed stunned for a moment, but not long after, he aimed his weapon again. Firing, McCree combat rolled out of the way, reloading his gun in the process. Now the mercs turned away from the broken Mad Dawg and began firing at McCree, trying to press him into a corner. As he tried to peel himself off the ground, Mad Dawg saw a familiar cloaked figure step over him.

"Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me…" Mad Dawg muttered, shocked at who was standing in front of him.

 _ **BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!**_

As his shotguns fired, Reaper watched as the Talon agents and gang members dropped to the ground, dead or brutally wounded.

"None of you deserve to wear the Talon name." Reaper scowled, in his deep threatening tone, and for once, Mad Dawg was intimidated by it. Some of the agents dropped their weapons, but it made no difference, Reaper blew them away, making sure none of them survived. Dropping his shotguns and pulling two more out from somewhere, Reaper, weaved, wraithed and blasted his way through the reinforcements who entered the room. McCree threw a flashbang and fired back into the crowd, killing another agent. He grabbed another one's gun and bashed him in the face with it, then cocked it and fired it directly into his chest. Killing him. Reaper grabbed one of the less armoured mercs and snapped his neck without a second thought.

"Just like Blackwatch, ain't it?" McCree commented to Reaper.

"I'll tell you now what I told you then. Shut up and shoot." Reaper replied, only for McCree to fire two shots directly above Reaper's shoulders, which ended up hitting two mercs, taking them down.

"You've improved." Reaper commented.

"Had a good teacher." McCree replied. Only for the two to be separated by fire form the enemy. Finally getting up, Mad Dawg picked up an agent's machine gun. Looking around, Mad Dawg's mind suddenly formulated a plan.

"Back to back!" He shouted.

McCree rolled past the mercs (shooting two in the back), getting towards Mad Dawg and Reaper turned his back, shoulder-shoulder with McCree and Mad Dawg. All three agents fired their weapons as fast as they could. The trio fired forwards, backwards, over-the-shoulder and from the hip. Shells and bodies were dropping, bullets were flying, it was absolute chaos.

"Reload!" McCree said, as he and Mad Dawg swapped weapons. Mad Dawg opened the chamber and re-loaded the gun while McCree blasted mercs with the double barrel shotgun, only to pull the trigger and hear a clicking. "You're out!" Seeing the opportunity, a merc ran towards Mad Dawg, who grabbed his tomahawk and sliced cleanly across the merc's throat, then shoved the peacekeeper up under his helmet and pulled the trigger.

"Reaper! I never thought I'd say this-" Mad Dawg began, but stopped as Reaper kept firing with one hand and handed Mad Dawg a shotgun with his other hand. Mad Dawg holstered his shotgun, handed McCree his peacekeeper back, and then fired with Reaper's shotgun. The kick-back was far stronger than he expected, but the damage was undeniable, up close, a single shell blew a hole right through an Omnic's chest, Mad Dawg Spartan-kicked him away as Reaper pulled a second one out and returned to his dual-shotgun style. The numbers were weakened, and the reinforcements seemed to be hiding in the back, knowing the tri-force of death in the centre of the room couldn't be dealt with directly. Then, with several thunderous footsteps, the Titan re-appeared. All three agents focused their fire on him, but it had no effect. The Titan raised his weapon and Mad Dawg pushed McCree and Reaper to the ground, trying to move them out of the way of the incoming bullet storm. Suddenly, a purple shockwave shot through the room. The Titan fell to one knee and froze, sparking aggressively. Sombra re-appeared, de-activating her cloaking ability and looked around.

"Hey." She finally said.

"Took you long enough." Mad Dawg commented.

"You're welcome." She retorted sarcastically.

"Why the hell did you do that?" Reaper asked, getting up.

"Do what?" Mad Dawg asked.

"You pushed us out of the way, you would've been torn to shreds." Reaper stated the obvious, genuinely confused as to why Mad Dawg would do something that stupid.

"This is my problem, not yours." Mad Dawg stated. "I don't need more people getting hurt because of me." He stated before turning to McCree. "Speaking of which, thanks. And I'm sorry, I didn't want to get you dragged into this as well."

"Kid, I-" McCree began before shouting. "BEHIND YOU!"

Suddenly, the Titan gabbed Mad Dawg by the top of his head and threw him into a wall. Mad Dawg smashed into it with a loud _**WHAM!**_ Groaning as he got up, even MORE mercs appeared. One drove a knife into his shoulder, making him cry out in pain. Another drove a knife into his lower gut, making him cough a large amount of blood. The Titan grabbed his head and slammed him face first into the ground before stomping on his spine, a sickening _**CRACK!**_ Resonating throughout the room. Mad Dawg screamed in pain as McCree winced and Sombra gasped, but then found themselves having to deal with machine gun fire. The titan flipped him over and stood on his arm, Mad Dawg yelling in pain. McCree fired at the Titan's head, but the bullets dinged off of the Titan's helmet. He simply turned his head and pointed to McCree. Three of the mercs grabbed him and another two grabbed Sombra. Reaper would've tried to help, but he was being kept cornered by several Talon agents who had NO IDEA what the hell they were doing. Opening fire directly onto Mad Dawg, the Titan's bullets shredded Mad dawg's insides into human coleslaw. Even with his healing factor, there was _NO WAY_ Mad Dawg was going to survive this. One of the mercs opened his bag and found the needles with adrenaline. Not sure what they were, he walked over to the Titan.

"Boss?" He asked, holding them up. "Should we?"

"Sic em'." The Titan nodded, not caring what was in them, assuming it would cause Mad Dawg to die from whatever drugs were in them.

"No!" McCree and Sombra yelled at the same time.

The merc jabbed all the needles into Mad Dawg's arm and pushed the plungers all the way down. Mad Dawg's pupils dilated and his heart went into overdrive again, his healing factor managing to repair his insides. His heart began pounding, sending blood through his body, re-igniting his will to fight, to win, but this time, he didn't hear the familiar voice in his head which encouraged him to fight to save those he loved, this time, he heard something much deadlier...

kill them all!

KILL THEM ALL!

 _KILL THEM ALL!_

 _ **KILL THEM ALL!**_

Letting out a savage growl, Mad Dawg's hands began to clench, deep within him body, a lost mutational gene was just activated. His fingers began growing thicker and turning into razor-sharp claws on the end of them. His teeth began to jitter and the marrow in them began to alter, long, thick, dagger-like teeth appeared in his mouth. His back began to pulsate and fur began to cover it. The Titan standing on him took a step off in shock.

He shouldn't have.

Mad Dawg launched at the Titan and took a large bite out of the Titan's neck, ripping and tearing until the Titan's head fell off. Turning with blood-stained teeth to the others, who all had their weapons drawn. Mad Dawg looked around before pointing to one of them.

"You." He said in a twisted, deep voice. "Wore the brown pants. Good."

Without a second thought, Mad Dawg launched himself at the mercs, latching onto one of them and taking another deep bite.

"Did you know he could do this?" Reaper said, genuinely surprised.

"No." McCree answered, just as shocked, then added. "Hey Gabe."

"Jesse."

The three took cover and watched as an insane animal tore through the remaining Talon agents and mercenaries.

 **Eight Minutes Later…**

"Gak! Agh! Ugh…" Mad Dawg groaned, suddenly coming back to reality. Shaking his head his breath stuttered upon seeing the carnage and mutilated bodies around him. "OH, MY GOD! WHAT DID I DO?!"

He fell back, looking around, breathing erratically. He saw human bodies, and omnics. Then his mind began flashing back to when he was young. Surrounded by torn and broken Omnics, sparks and scrap all around him.

" _Help us!"_

" _Pl..ease… end… my… su..ff..n..g"_

" _Why?"_

" _You'r…a…mons…ter…"_

 _NO._ Mad Dawg suddenly snapped internally. _I'm trying to FIX my mistakes. Virus is making this worse._

"Kid…" Mad Dawg said slowly. "What. The hell. Was that?"

"I…I…I…I don't know!" Mad Dawg stuttered, terrified. "McCree… I-"

Suddenly, walls appeared from the ground, cutting Mad Dawg off and separating them once again.

"YoU'RE aLL jUSt rAts in a MAzE!" Virus laughed through the speakers. "FiND thE eXit, fINd ME."

"McCree…" Mad Dawg called through the wall. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I dragged you into this… and I'm sorry for what's gonna happen next…"

"Kid, I came here on my own free will." McCree called back. "Do us all a favor. Kill this prick. And hopefully… I'll see you again someday."

"Goodbye Jesse."

"Bye Dawg." McCree said somberly. Mad Dawg couldn't see it, but McCree tipped his hat slightly, while Reaper watched, giving the slightest hint of a nod to where Mad Dawg's voice came from.

Making his way through the maze, Mad Dawg came to dead end after dead end, but eventually he saw a door with Virus' mask painted on it. Walking to the final door, he opened it and walked into a dark room. Suddenly, a bright blue light appeared and Mad Dawg covered his eyes. Looking up once his eyes adjusted, Mad Dawg saw Virus wearing his mask, sitting on a chair on a large screen, with humans and omnics, their faces concealed by Virus' logo, on smaller screens. Spray painted on the ground were the words _Judgement._ Pictures of people and omnics lined the bottom of the screens, surrounded by candles. Mad Dawg knew all of them. He knew who the people behind the masks were too, these were the families Mad Dawg had destroyed, the ones whom he had taken their loved ones away from. His eyes watered somewhat, finally standing before his victims as the monster he was.

"FoR those of YoU plAYinG at HoME, now's YOuR TiME to ChoOSE. Did MaD DAWG eaRN hiS FrEEDOM? Has He LEARNed hiS leSsOn? TuRN oFF yoUR scREENs If YOU thINk so, OR keEP wATCHING if yOU WaNT tO SeE hoW ThiS gOES DowN."

After Virus stopped talking, Mad Dawg stepped forward, disregarding any of the planned messages he had created over the years, any pre-planned apologies, now, he knew needed to own up to it, they deserved nothing but the truth.

"I know you all want me dead! And I don't blame you!" He shouted. "There were mornings where I'd wake up questioning why I was allowed to keep walking while so many innocents had died by my hand! If this is where I'm gonna die, that's fine. But don't let it be because of what this shit-for-brains DJ told you!" He yelled, pointing to Virus. "I don't know what he said, but why I did it is because I was trying to help! In King's Row, the power company had put controllers on the power flow, they were overcharging the lower class, Omnics and those who couldn't afford it, and not giving them their power. I broke into the power plant, I was nine or ten, I don't remember really… I tried to restore the power, I found the main processing core and juiced it up… And it overcharged."

Looking up at the cameras, everyone watching was shocked to see that the man behind the Omnic Blackout was just a child, and they could see he had tears on his face.

"I don't deserve forgiveness… but you all deserve the truth." He continued. "I never meant to hurt anyone! I know you want to see justice done, but if you do this, you'll be suffering from the same damn guilt that's been tearing me apart for the past decade!" He continued, while some would say confessing their sins would make them feel better after, it was only making Mad Dawg feel worse and worse with each passing word. "I'm not saying you're wrong to be angry! You have every right! But this retard wants you to sink to his level! Killing me won't bring them back! I know I'm the last person you want to hear that from, and I'm sorry for what I did! And I'm sorry that this child-molesting fuck-nut dragged you back into this!" Mad Dawg shouted, pointing to Virus. "Please! Don't become what I am! Don't become… a… don't become a monster…"

When he finished, Mad Dawg felt like everything in him died, his soul, his heart, all of it. That's all he was.

A Monster.

Why? Why was he still alive? After all the shit he had done, why was he allowed to live while those he hurt died?

He didn't. He knew that now.

"So that's it huh?" He whispered. "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!" He suddenly roared in anger. "DO IT! IT'S CLEAR WE'RE ALL MONSTERS! SO, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! DO IT! KILL ME!" Tears rolling down his eyes, he clenched his fists and looked at the people watching. "I DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE! GO AHEAD! WATCH ME DIE!"

Then, a few screens shut off. No words, no response, one of the remaining screens, a woman, judging by her hair, was wiping tears away, something about her seemed familiar to Mad Dawg, but at the same time, he was really upset, so he could've been seeing things. But the message was clear. And both Virus and Mad Dawg knew it.

"WeLL I gUeSs wE haVe our ANSwER! So LONg DawG! Bye-bye! Adios!"

Suddenly, the vents opened and a gas began fuming into the room. Mad Dawg coughed, then his eyes began to water.

 _Poison._ He realized.

Falling to his knees, he could see one of the remaining women on the screen was screaming something, asking Virus to stop. But Virus was laughing hysterically.

"DAWG!" He heard faintly.

Looking over he could see Sombra banging on the window of a nearby door.

"GO!" He shouted, his voice cracking. "DON'T DIE BECAUSE OF ME!"

Sombra fired her machine pistol at the glass, but it didn't break. She pounded on the glass, looking for anything she could hack, but there was nothing.

"NonononononononononoNO!" She shouted, tears filling her eyes.

"Let him go Sombra." Akande's voice came over her comm. It caused her to pause briefly. His voice… It wasn't malicious. His voice sounded almost… sad. "This is the end of his story."

Sombra watched, tears now rolling down her face, as Mad Dawg fell to the ground, seemingly reaching for something.

And didn't get up.

 **A.N. And… Done.**

 **Ha! Just kidding!**

Virus was ecstatic. He was gone! He was finally DEAD! The freak who killed his family was finally dead! As he made his way to the room, he laughed uncontrollably. The way he tried to beg for forgiveness made Virus laugh even harder. Checking to see that the room was now properly ventilated, he walked into the auditorium and looked at the corpse of Mad Dawg. Virus wasn't an idiot, he was gonna shoot him several times to make sure. Kicking him face up, Virus laughed again.

"It's amazing." He commented aloud. "When this started, I was just trying to steal from Talon. I had no idea you were even alive! And boy oh boy was it fun! Framing that Mexican whore, forging orders to the Junkers! I mean, sure, the Junker Queen's dead and all, but there's no way they can trace that back to me! Best of all, I _**DESTROYED**_ the ONE thing you cared for! Lifting Mad Dawg up to his face he continued. "All your pals at Overwatch? They're _never_ gonna find out what happened to you!"

Virus knew that there was an Overwatch agent nearby, but it wouldn't be hard to deal with him, and as for Sombra? Well, one person off of his kill list, onto another, he assumed.

Pressing the gun against Mad Dawg's temple, he paused when he heard something.

"Ditto."

There was a bright flash, and Mad Dawg grabbed Virus' neck and shoved the active blowtorch against the metal mask he wore. Virus screamed in pain as the metal mask melted and his skin burned as it touched the scarring hot metal. Mad Dawg didn't stop either, he melded Virus' mask to his skin, making sure he felt EVERYTHING.

"You manipulated families who lost so much!" Mad Dawg shouted. Punching Virus in the face, making him scream as his skin touched the burning hot metal. "You manipulated my friends!" Mad Dawg now stabbed Virus in the gut. "YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME!" Mad Dawg slammed Virus face-first onto the ground and held him there, making him scream as his skin melted onto the hit metal. Grabbing his handguns, he shot virus several times in the back, blood splattering everywhere, and Virus screaming even louder. "You said nothing would ever be traced back to you. And y'know, you're right. No one's ever seen your real face…"

Reaching under Virus' chin, Mad Dawg grabbed onto the still hot mask.

"SHOW ME YOUR FACE!" Mad Dawg roared.

With one swift motion, Mad Dawg ripped the mask off of Virus. There was a sickening squelching sound as mask and skin were ripped off, along with most of the Dj's face off at the same time. Virus screamed in pain and Mad Dawg screamed an animalistic scream as he held the bloody mask in the air. Mad Dawg looked at Virus, now with a good chunk of his face gone. The rest burned or scarred form something else. His eyes burning with rage and fear, anger because he hadn't killed Mad Dawg, and fear because he knew what was coming next.

"I promised I'd kill you if it was the last thing I'd do. And I don't break promises. Just necks."

"If you do this… You'll always be a monster." Virus garbled. Blood pooling in and flowing out of his mouth.

"Fair enough." Mad Dawg growled.

 **Snap!**

Twisting the Dj's neck, Virus fell to the ground dead, and then Mad Dawg fell back to the ground, feeling out of… everything, and as the door opened, and the whole room went black.

Mad Dawg groaned as he got up, surrounded by nothing by blackness. Looking around he saw… Himself?

"Hey?" Mad Dawg called, confused.

The second figure turned around, it WAS him. But with bright red eyes and a shadowy aurora around him, similar to Reaper's wraith form.

"Yo." The second Mad Dawg said.

"Who the hell are you?" Mad Dawg #1 asked.

"I'm you. And you're me." Mad Dawg #2 said pointing to Mad Dawg and then to himself. "I'm the side of you Talon was trying to make. The side you've mentally locked away."

"Oh. Well… Where are we?" Mad Dawg #1 asked, looking around confused.

"We're in your mind." Mad Dawg #2 said, motioning to the world around them.

"And you're the 'evil' me?" Mad Dawg #1 asked to clarify.

"Yup."

"And you've been in control for the past fifteen-ish minutes?"

"Yup."

"Oh. Well in that case."

A chain suddenly flew out from nowhere and dragged the Evil Mad Dawg away, who struggled and screamed:

"I'll be back!"

 _Hopefully not._ Mad Dawg grumbled, as the room began to get brighter.

"…Walk away from the light kid!"

"What?" Mad Dawg grumbled.

"Oh, thank Dios!" Sombra exclaimed, hugging Mad Dawg. "I thought you were dead!"

"Yeah, not yet." Mad Dawg laughed as she helped him up. "Holy crap… Is it finally over?"

"Yeah, I think it is doggo." Sombra replied with a coy smile.

"Awesome." Mad Dawg sighed. "Take whatever you want… On one condition."

"What's that?" Sombra asked with a raised brow.

"Half the money from his bank accounts." Mad Dawg stated. "Give it to the families who were affected by the blackout."

"Even after all this time, you still have to be the hero." Sombra laughed, as the two walked out of the room. "I like that about you."

"Where's Alejandra?" Mad Dawg weakly asked.

"She's fine, thanks to you." Sombra gently smiled.

"Yay." Mad Dawg weakly cheered. "What about the other two?"

"Reaper and McCree went their separate ways." Sombra explained. "I don't know why Reaper came back though… Maybe he likes you!"

"The feeling is mutual."

"C'mon cariño." Sombra smiled, wrapping an arm around him for support. "Let's get outta here."

"Yeah. I think I'm done with Chicago…" Mad Dawg mumbled.

Mad Dawg stumbled across the room, supported by the Mexican hacker who tried to kill him just a few days ago. The two opened the doors and Sombra helped Mad Dawg leave the building, and his past, behind. Weakly picking up his phone, Mad Dawg went into his contacts and called someone.

"Yo Kawalik? I got a job for ya." He muttered.

 **5 Days Later…**

Mad Dawg and Sombra sat on a picnic table on a beach, watching the sun set. Mad Dawg took a sip form a bottle and coughed violently.

"Agh! What is this crap?!" He said disgusted.

"It's tequila." Sombra said. "We drink it."

"This is alcohol? Man. You guys REALLY need some better liquor in Mexico..."

"And what do _you_ drink?" Sombra retorted.

"Whiskey." Mad Dawg commented. "And Freedom 35 Lager."

"Ew!" She exclaimed. "You drink that Irish toilet water?!"

"First of all, it's Scottish. Second, it's WAY better than this dirty Spanish laundry water! You put dead animals into it!" Mad Dawg argued. Sombra scoffed and went back to her drink. While Mad Dawg took another sip, and coughed again before turning to Sombra. "So, you got what you wanted out of that place?"

"Yup!" She smiled. "All his tech, his hard drives, we got it all! The stuff is beyond next generation. I can't even hack it unless I'm no more than five inches away, it's gonna take me forever to crack the coding on them!"

"Sweet. Best of luck with whatever's next for you." Mad Dawg commented.

"Right back at ya. And if you don't mind me asking, what IS your plan?"

"I'm gonna open a porno theater." Mad Dawg stated, while Sombra chocked on her drink. Without missing a beat, Mad Dawg continued. "Why? Because it's so revolting, all of you will leave me alone!"

"Really?!" Sombra asked, coughing from her drink.

"Ha ha! Nope!" Mad Dawg laughed aloud, enjoying the shocked look on Sombra's face. "I ain't telling you. Mainly because I'm not sure yet."

Sombra rolled her eyes and took another drink.

"Do you know why Reaper came back?" Mad Dawg finally asked the question that was bugging him for the past few days.

"No." Sombra shook her head. "I didn't call him, and I don't have any idea why he came back either. It's not like he knew about the technology or the cash he had in the base."

"Huh." Mad Dawg nodded. "How's Alejandra?"

Sombra gave a small smile before answering. "She's fine." Sombra nodded. "Her mom was in tears when she came home, apparently she had been kidnapped for almost a week and a half."

"Wow." Mad Dawg said, genuinely surprised. "They must REALLY hate me."

"Actually…" Sombra began, rubbing the back of her neck. "They think you're a hero. Alejandra understood what I explained to her, and she saw you carve yourself open to try and save her. She thinks you're nuts. But she's thankful."

"Good enough!" Mad Dawg declared, before taking a long drink. He paused, then his eyes widened and he coughed violently again. Then, Mad Dawg reached into a bag and pulled something out, Sombra raised a brow at him.

"What. Is that?" She asked.

"This, is a Cowa-Bacon-Bunga Burger." Mad Dawg said with a grin and Sombra's eyes widened.

"NO." She said loudly. "I am NOT eating that."

"Hey, I drank your piss water, you're eating a burger."

"Two sips don't count as drinking kid!" She exclaimed, scotching away slightly.

"Bitch, I'mma make you eat this freaking burger." Mad Dawg said determination in his voice, performing a crane stance, before thrusting the burger in her face. Sombra retaliated, trying to push Mad Dawg away, until she realized that Mad Dawg wasn't gonna stop until she took a bite. She swiped the burger and took a bite, glaring at him, but then her face lightened.

"Mios dios…" She muttered.

"Oh c'mon. It can't be that bad!" Mad Dawg muttered.

"No! Are you kidding me? It's delicious!" Sombra exclaimed, before taking another bite, Mad Dawg smirked and took another drink from his bottle before coughing. The two sat and enjoyed as the sun set in the distance.

 **Three Months Later…**

Mad Dawg walked into the new hideout he had, looking around at the room he had above his new business, he walked over and dropped his bag onto his bed. Walking over to the closet, he pushed some things aside and pulled out the wing-suit jetpack Torbjörn had built months ago. Setting it off to the side, he opened a trunk he had under his bed and grinned as he pulled a helmet and jumpsuit out. Just because he wasn't part of Overwatch anymore, that didn't mean he wasn't gonna keep fighting for peace. And to him, he knew he needed to change things up. He had spent too much time laying low, now, it was hero time again.

 **Next Time: Rise of The Crimson Phoenix**

 **A.N. Agh… Nine chapters. Thanks guys! This is the 25** **th** **chapter, I wanna thank all of you for coming all this way with me. When I finished the first draft two days ago, the chapter was just over 5K words, now, the final count is 9747 words. I love you all that much! I'll admit, Bad Blood got darker as the chapters went on, but I'm gonna be honest, that was kinda the point. But now that it's over, things are gonna get a lot lighter. Despite what it seems like, Mad Dawg and Overwatch aren't done yet. Also, what happens now with Mad Dawg, Mercy and Moria? Why DID Reaper come back? Is McCree gonna continue to keep quiet? Is Overwatch still looking for Mad Dawg? Well, Follow and Review, and you'll find out soon!**

 **(Also, I know Brigitte is out, don't worry, she'll be appearing real soon!)**


	26. Rise of the Phoenix

It was quiet night in Numbani, there wasn't any breeze and the only noise that could occasionally be heard would be cars passing by on the road. A young woman looked down at her phone as she walked back towards her apartment. There was a noise from behind her and she stopped. Looking behind her, she didn't see anyone, but she walked a little quicker. The noise continued and she nervously ran into an alley.

"Hey little lady." Came a voice. Turning around, the woman came face-to-face with a man with twisted hair and rotten teeth. "Spare some change?"

The woman backed up only to bump into an Omnic holding a knife, backing up slightly, her breathing began to stutter as fear overcame her.

"Help!" She screamed, only for the man to pull a knife and point it at her.

"Keep screamin' and we'll rip yer tongue out!" He snapped. "No hand over yer bag and' you won't be hurt too much!"

There was an odd sound, and a figure dropped from the rooftop into the alleyway with a _THOOM!_ The three turned and looked as the figure stood up. His head was concealed by a large red bird mask. His arms had wings over them and he wore a red jumpsuit. His feet were concealed with boots that looked like bird's feet.

"Let her go." The newcomer said, in a deep tone, pointing to the man.

"…who are you?" The man asked not sure if what he was seeing was real.

 _ **WHAM!**_

"I, am **THE CRIMSON PHOENIX**!" The Crimson Phoenix declared loudly as he hit the man. The woman and Omnic took a step back in shock as the newcomer swung hard and sent the man flying into a dumpster, leaving him missing more teeth than he already was and seeing stars. The Omnic dripped the knife and backed up, clearly thinking that the Phoenix was insane. Before he could run, the Crimson Phoenix launched himself at the Omnic, and performed a Mexican-wrestler style body slammed him into the ground. Standing up, he heard the Omnic and the man groan in pain.

"You alright ma'am?" The Crimson Phoenix asked.

"Y..yes." She stuttered, genuinely surprised as to what had just happened. "Thank you."

"Just doing my job ma'am." The Crimson Phoenix saluted her, then put his arms out to the side as the police began to arrive. Suddenly, the jetpack on his back activated and the Crimson Phoenix took to the sky, leaving two would-be criminals lying on the ground, and a woman watching him leave, wonder in her eyes. After flying for a few minutes, the Crimson Phoenix landed on the rooftop of an apartment building. Pulling the helmet off, Mad Dawg breathed in a big gulp of non-sweaty mask air. Rubbing a hand through his sweaty hair, Mad Dawg made a mental note to find a way to add some ventilation to the mask. After taking off the rest of the costume and wing-suit backpack, Mad Dawg hid the costume and jumped onto the fire escape, heading down it to return to his home.

 **The Next Day…**

"So, how's the garage Zy?" Mad Dawg asked, pouring a mug of coffee and handing it to Zyon.

"Things are good, they're quiet." Zyon commented, sipping on his coffee. "How's the shop Toby?"

In the three months since Mad Dawg fad managed to erase himself, he had finally decided (By throwing knives at a board) that he'd move to Numbani. On his way there, he made a quick trip to a shadier side of Ilios, and managed to get himself a new I.D. now, he was Tobias Kenny. When he got to Numbani, he used some of the funds he 'borrowed' from Talon and Virus to renovate a run-down building into a small coffee shop/game shop with a flat above it so he could crash there when he wasn't working. It was a modest success, but Zyon had come almost every day for the past month and a half. It was nice, having someone to talk to, despite most of what Zyon knew about him being a lie, but still. He wasn't 'Mad Dawg' anymore (although for the sake of simplicity, the author will continue to write him as such).

"It's good man." Mad Dawg nodded.

"I never got to ask, where'd you come from?" Zyon asked, setting his mug down.

"Well, when a man and a woman love each other very much…" Mad Dawg began, making Zyon laugh aloud.

"No man! Not like that!" He laughed, nearly knocking his mug over as he tried t balance himself on the counter. "Where did you grow up? Where'd you live before moving here?"

"Does it matter?" Mad Dawg asked, trying to avoid the question.

"No. Not really." Zyon shook his head. "Just talking."

"Well, if you gotta know, I lived in Ghibitar for a while then I moved to Chicago. Eventually, I moved out here."

"Man... You jumped around a lot." Zyon commented, before his phone buzzed. "Welp, gotta go. See you tomorrow Toby!"

"Later!" Mad Dawg called as Zyon left. Setting the mug in a sink, Mad Dawg jumped over the counter and sat down on the couch in his café, changing the channel to the news, he couldn't help but give a sad smile as he watched a news report about several Overwatch agents saving civilians from a burning building. There were a few close encounters since he had left, but so far, Mad Dawg had managed to stay out of sight. There was _**NO WAY**_ he was going back. Not after what he had said and done. There was no redemption for him, not now, not ever. And since the author is making such a big deal out of saying he's not going back, you _**KNOW**_ he's not going back. Now, he ran a small coffee house, and for the first time in a while, he was happy. And he wasn't hurting anyone to be happy.

That night, Mad Dawg took to the sky, looking for any potential crime. One of the things he liked about Numbani, was there wasn't much crime to begin with, but that also meant he got bored. Real quick. Noticing a small group in a park, he swooped downwards and landed. The group turned shocked to him, and Mad Dawg could clearly smell drugs.

"Dude." One of the members in the group said. "It's a giant chicken."

"I am not a chicken." Mad Dawg said in his deep voice. "I, am The Crimson Phoenix."

"Whoa." Another one of the people in the group said. "Is this real? Or are we hallucinating this?"

"Relinquish your illegal narcotics to me or face-" Mad Dawg began before being cut off.

"You want some?" One of the guys asked, holding a joint out to Mad dawg.

 **Five Minutes Later…**

"Dude." Mad Dawg commented, sitting on a park bench looking up at the stars. "This is surreal."

"I know bird bro." one of the group said from where she sat on the ground, next to the bench. "Hey, just askin' are you… uh… part of Over…Over…Overwhat?"

"Overwatch?" Mad Dawg said, his masked head turning.

"Yeah. Them."

"Nah, I ain't part of Overwatch." Mad Dawg said, shaking his head. "I don't know if I could ever be that kinda hero."

"Really? From what we hear, you're a hero!" Another one commented. "You saved my sister the other night!"

"That was your sister?" Mad Dawg said, genuinely surprised.

"Yeah dude!"

"She's hot."

"Dude…"

"I'm serious! She seems like a very nice, very attractive woman!"

"A superhero's telling you your sister's hot Connor!" One of the people in the group laughed. "Doubt you ever thought that would happen!"

There was some good-natured laughter all around, then the group sat in silence, enjoying the starry night. Mad Dawg smiled as he saw a shooting star fly overhead. Someone had once told him that you made wishes on them, it seemed odd, but Mad Dawg was willing to give it a try.

 _If there's anyone listening._ Mad Dawg thought. _My wish is things can settle down, and that the old Overwatch crew is okay._

 **Meanwhile…**

"So, we're just giving up!?" Hana shouted, anger and sadness in her voice.

"It's been over three months Hana. Either he's dead or gone." Genji sighed with a shake of his head. Setting a tablet down after he finished crossing off the last place they had checked.

"No!" Hana exclaimed, stomping her foot. "We can't give up!"

"Three months ago, we found his home destroyed and covered in junker corpses." Hanzo added, looking over from where he was training. "Either they took him and killed him by now, or he's escaped and is hiding somewhere."

"So?!" The Gamer exclaimed, but it almost came out like a squeak. "He's our friend!"

"Maybe he's still _your_ friend." Torbjörn muttered, not looking up from the blueprints he was working on. "But he quit the team, and it's clear 'friendship' doesn't mean much to him."

Hana's face went red and she stomped out of the room, the doors opening and closing behind her. The agents in the room looked at the door, no one knowing how to react.

"That was somewhat uncalled for." Genji finally spoke up.

"So was most of what Mad Dawg said to us." Torbjörn replied, still not looking up.

Hana walked into Mad Dawg's old room and plopped down on his bed, arms crossed, still seething. They were just going to give up searching for Mad Dawg?! He could be in trouble! Or worse! Maybe it was because she spent so much time on the internet, but while Mad Dawg's words did hurt, she wasn't as effected as some of the others. Mei didn't say a word for a full week, she kept entirely to herself, barely ate, it was heartbreaking. But now, Mad Dawg was out there, dead or hiding, and everyone decided to give up on him. Most surprisingly, Solider 76 wiped him from most of the records and moved on. Refusing to acknowledge him anymore, so he wasn't going to be any help. McCree and Lució were the last two to see him, but the former refused to speak about it, even under threat of Blackwatch style interrogation, and the latter was off making new music.

"Hana, love?" Came a voice.

Turning her head, Hana gave a slight sigh as Tracer walked into the room and sat down on the bed next to her.

"You alright?" She asked in her kind tone.

"No." Hana frowned. "Mad Dawg's still out there, and we're just giving up on him! If it was one of us out there, we'd stop at nothing to find them! Mad Dawg'd probably keep searching every moment of every day! And now we're just ditching him!"

Tracer put a hand on Hana's back and thought about it for a few moments before responding.

"Did you ever think maybe this is what he wants?" She asked. "He did say he wanted to leave. Maybe he got what he wanted."

Hana looked down at the ground. She didn't like the answer, but at the same time, if Mad Dawg WAS alive, it probably WAS what he wanted…

"You think he's alive?" Hana asked, eyes watering somewhat.

"I'd say yes." Tracer nodded, clearly having made up her mind about that. "After everything he's been through, I'd guess that even if he did get taken by the Junkers, he'd find a way out. He's a fighter, he wouldn't go down easily. If we're being honest, something tells me he's gonna be okay, and maybe we'll run into him someday. Maybe… Maybe he'll come back someday."

"You think so?" She asked.

"Yeah. I think so." Tracer said with a reassuring smile, giving a slight nod.

"Thanks Lena." Hana smiled.

"Anytime love." Lena smiled in response.

Hana felt… a little better, it sucked knowing that Mad Dawg was possibly gone, but at the same time, she felt some comfort in knowing that wherever he was, he was probably happy in his own unique way.

"Hey, you wanna go rent a movie?"

A few days had passed, and it was the same old, same old, for Mad Dawg. Sell coffee, watch TV, search for crime, sell coffee, watch TV, search for crime, sell coffee, watch TV, search for crime. And…

Nothing.

Numbani was pretty much crime-free. There was the occasional mugger, but apparently most of them had decided to stop attempting to rob or steal due to the rumors of some sort of vigilante going around beating the crap out of them. The paper had taken to calling him 'The Shadow of Justice'.

 _Which sounds pretty cool to be honest._ Mad Dawg thought as he read the article. It went on to state that citizens of Numbani seemed to appreciate his work, they felt safer.

It wasn't dark yet, but due to extreme boredom, Mad Dawg took to his usual flight route, looking down for anything suspicious. For about eight minutes, there was nothing but the sound of the jetpack and Lúcio's music he was listening to as he flew. Finally, he felt like grabbing a drink so he landed and walked into a nearby convenience store. It only occurred to him once he was in the store that he was in his Phoenix costume and that this may have been a stupid idea… Oh well, he was here, and he was thirsty, so he'd do it in his superhero attire. Thankfully, the Omnic behind the counter didn't notice him walk in. As Mad Dawg looked through the drinks he heard the bell ring signalling the door opening and he heard a gruff voice and a gun coking.

"Money. NOW."

Mad Dawg froze, knowing what was going on. Some idiot was trying to rob the store.

 _Boy, oh boy… Is HE in for a surprise._ Mad Dawg mentally laughed, trying to not laugh out loud.

"Hey man. I don't want any trouble…" The Omnic stuttered, clearly scared.

"Then give me the money, and you might get to live through the night." The man snapped.

Mad Dawg grabbed a can of Hydra Energy and walked to the counter, standing behind the man. He was thankful that the Omnic wasn't human, otherwise he'd be given away in seconds because of the shock on a person's face. The Omnic did freeze, having heard stories about who this masked figure might be, and hoping those stories were true. Mad Dawg gave the Omnic a thumbs up to tell him he had this.

"What's taking so long you scrap heap!?" The man with the gun yelled.

"Hey dude." Mad Dawg said tapping on his shoulder. "Is this gonna take awhile?"

"No. It shouldn't if this piece of junk isn't an id-" The man glanced over his shoulder and his eyes went comically large. He began sputtering as he shakily tried to aim his gun at Mad Dawg.

"Oh no! My one weakness!" Mad Dawg cried in mock terror, covering his face. "Tiny handguns!"

Without warning, Mad Dawg grabbed the gun and twisted the man's arm upwards. He yelled in pain and the gun fired off. The Omnic ducked down as Mad Dawg slammed the man's back onto the counter then threw him out the door onto the sidewalk.

"Y'know, I was just trying to get a drink." Mad Dawg said, walking out of the store. "But nooooo! You just HAVE to try and take a hard working Omnic's money!" He yelled, hoisting the man up. By this point, multiple people were watching, genuinely shocked at the fact that not only was this supposed 'vigilante' very real, but he was currently fighting a robber.

The man regained his senses and punched Mad Dawg in the ribs, Mad Dawg coughed in surprise and dropped the man, who then swung hard, hitting Mad Dawg in the side of the head. Thankfully, the helmet took most of the blow, and Mad Dawg grabbed his arm and flipped him over him and onto the ground.

"Somebody call the cops!" One of the people on the sidewalk shouted. "There's a guy in a superhero suit beating up a criminal! It's AWESOME!"

The man kicked Mad Dawg's leg and knocked him to the ground. He tried to hit him, but Mad Dawg grabbed his hand and twisted it backwards, making him yell in pain. He then forced the robber's hand into his face, making the man stumble back. Mad Dawg jumped up and kicked the man square in the chest. Mad Dawg then grabbed the man by his shirt and punched him in the face, then punched him again, and again. After a few more hits. Mad Dawg stopped, breathing heavily. Letting go of the shirt, the man found himself lying on the ground, groaning in pain, but clearly wasn't going to get up. Mad Dawg looked around, seeing the shocked faces of the small crowd which had formed. He then walked back into the store. The Omnic slowly got up and looked at the masked hero.

"You okay sir?" Mad Dawg asked in his deep voice.

"Y..yes! Thank you! You're a hero!" The Omnic stuttered then exclaimed.

Mad Dawg picked up the energy drink and set a five-dollar bill on the counter.

"Keep the change."

Walking back outside, Mad Dawg was genuinely startled when loud cheering erupted form the surrounding people and Omnics. Applause and cheering echoed all around the block as Mad Dawg looked around, unsure of what to do. The next thing he knew, several people ran up and were taking pictures with him.

"That was so awesome!" One exclaimed.

"You were so brave!" Another shouted.

"Who are you?" A third asked.

"Who am I?" Mad Dawg said, and the crowd seemed to quiet down, eager to learn the hero's name. "I, am **THE CRIMSON PHOENIX!** "

"Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix! Phoenix!" A loud cheer began form someone at the back, but then the chant began to emit from the surrounding crowd. Quickly, it turned into a full cheer as Mad Dawg walked amongst the crowd, shaking hands and taking pictures with people. He felt _AMAZING._ While in the back of his mind he was nervous Overwatch would find these images and possibly come looking for him, but he'd deal with that when that happened. About thirty minutes passed before he decided he had to get going. The cops had arrived and taken the robber away, and Mad Dawg wanted to do another round of surveillance before calling it a night.

"I'd love to stay, but I must be off! Crime doesn't rest, and neither shall I!" Mad Dawg declared, getting onto one knee, he jumped and the jet pack activated and he flew into the sky, the crowd cheering loudly below. Mad Dawg flew back to the apartment where he hid his costume, landed on the roof, got out of the costume, and immediately went home and went to bed.

 _ **The Next Day…**_

"…as a potential bank robbery was thwarted by a figure who calls himself 'The Crimson Phoenix'. The vigilante supposedly stopped a violent robbery attempt, before taking selfies with the surrounding crowd. Our sources believe he may be the vigilante which was being called 'The Shadow of Justice'. Citizens of Numbani seem to believe he is some sort of hero." The news reported stated, before cutting to several interviews.

"Some dude flying around beating up robbers and criminals? Hey, I see nothing wrong with it." One man stated to the reporter.

"He's fighting for humans _and_ Omnics, he's good in my books." An Omnic stated.

"I'm just wondering, where'd he get that mask?! That thing was dope!" A teenager exclaimed.

"Man, this guy should get a job with Overwatch! They need a hero like him!" Another man said, matter-of-factly.

"Dude, Overwatch? Really?" An Omnic said to his friend. "Forget them! This dude is LEAUGES above Overwatch! Y'know… even if he is a vigilante."

"He's not a vigilante. He's a hero, he saved my life." The woman from the alleyway said calmly.

"Local law enforcement has yet to release a statement, but this image was taken at the scene of the fight." An image appeared of the police chief and The Crimson Phoenix shaking hands. "So, where this leads to is currently unknown. But what is known is the fact that citizens of Numbani feel safer, knowing a Crimson Guardian is watching over them."

"Man, a dude in a bird costume fighting crime." Mad Dawg laughed as he and Zyon watched the news. "Sounds like something out of a comic."

"Yeah, but good for him!" Zyon stated. "If this guy wants to protect the innocent and stop criminals, let him do so!"

"Hey, if he wants to risk his life, let him do it. Not me." Mad Dawg chuckled. "If he ever comes back, I'll tell him you're a fan."

Zyon chocked on his coffee slightly before turning to Mad Dawg.

"He… comes here!?" Zyon said, shocked by that fact.

"He's come twice." Mad Dawg shrugged. "I told him if I ever hear anything crime-related I'd pass it onto him."

Zyon frowned, as if thinking about something, he gave Mad Dawg a glance before taking a folded piece of paper out from his jacket.

"Heard it through some informants that there's gonna be a big weapon deal tomorrow night at this address." He said handing it to Mad Dawg. "I'd contact the cops or someone, but we need someone who can get in and out quietly."

"Alright, if I see him, I'll let him know." Mad Dawg nodded, mentally thinking it over. This could be a trap, maybe Zyon was working for Talon… or Overwatch.

"Ugh, I gotta go." Zyon shook his head as he got up and left the store. Leaving Mad Dawg to wonder if he was gonna track this lead down or not.

 **Two Days Later…**

Landing on a roof, Mad Dawg grabbed a pair of binoculars and looked down at a group of humans and omnics carrying a large crate into an abandoned warehouse. Slowly making his way down to the warehouse, Mad Dawg slowly made his way amongst the boxes, cracking open one he saw assault rifles and handguns packed in the box.

 _Damn…_ Mad Dawg thought.

He ran around the corner and found himself in the centre of the warehouse, now with about a dozen people with weapons aimed at him. Looking amongst them, he noticed someone familiar, someone he _didn't_ want to see.

"Hey Widow." He said awkwardly.

Suddenly realizing who The Crimson Phoenix was, Widowmaker's eyes narrowed and she sneered angrily. Aiming her rifle at him. Mad Dawg coughed before taking a quick breath.

"Y'know what? I'm not dealing with this. Nope. Not my problem. I made a deal, I ain't breaking it. You guys gave fun with whatever you're doing here. Nope. I'm not dealing with this. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope." Mad Dawg said, holding his hands up and walking backwards, out of the warehouse and passed by Reaper, not noticing him as he continued saying: "Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope."

"You've _GOT_ to be kidding me…" Reaper growled. Having heard about the Crimson Phoenix, but never assuming Mad Dawg would be so stupid as to try and be a hero again. But then again, he should've expected it, it WAS Mad Dawg.

"Bye." Mad Dawg said, suddenly taking to the sky to get the hell outta here. He made a deal with Sombra, so he wasn't going to interfere with whatever was going on here and he wanted _**NOTHING**_ to do with Talon… Well, except maybe one thing.

"Not time for exposition, time for getting the hell outta here." Mad Dawg said, looking up towards where the author could possibly be. Quickly fleeing from the scene of the crime, Mad Dawg booked it across town and back to his home. Hoping this wouldn't have any negative repercussions.

The following day, Mad Dawg was genuinely nervous, he was trying to act calm and casual as if nothing had happened the night before, maybe it was all a dream. Mad Dawg shook his head, knowing what he saw, but decided to lay low. Mad Dawg had gone about his day normally, currently he was bent down to grab some more coffee grinds when a familiar voice caused a sub-zero chill to go his spine to the tips of his toes.

"We need to talk."

Slowly standing up, Mad Dawg came face-to-face with Doomfist. Giving him a flat yet intimidating look.

"So, this is where you were hiding."

"Shit." Mad Dawg breathed.

 **A.N. Next chapter done! So, what's Akande doing here? What's he want with Mad Dawg? Also, remember how MD has mentioned his old 'friends'? Well, you're gonna meet them next chapter. Also, also, what does Mad Dawg want from Talon? Maybe the answer will be in the next chapter… Review and Follow and I'll see ya next time!**


	27. Old Friends Part I

"So… You want a coffee or something?" Mad Dawg awkwardly asked.

"We had an accord." Akande said, completely ignoring Mad Dawg's question. Thankfully, he didn't have the gauntlet on his arm, but Mad Dawg still didn't like his chances of fighting Doomfist mano a mano.

"A bagel? Or maybe a muffin?"

"Why were you in that warehouse last night?"

"Nothing? Okay." Mad Dawg shrugged. "As for your question, I was in the warehouse because someone passed a message around saying there might be something weird going down, and if I didn't go, it would seem weird."

"So, you decided to break the accord we had?" Doomfist countered.

"Okay, uh, one. That deal was made with Sombra, secondly, I had no idea it was you guys." Mad Dawg said flatly. The answer seemed to annoy Doomfist, but at the same time, he at least seemed to understand. "Also, since I turned around and left, I'm not sure if I 'broke' the deal because I walked out of there the moment I learned it was you guys."

"After _everything_ that's happened to you in the last six months, you **STILL** want to try and be a hero?" Akande said, a mixture of annoyed at how persistent Mad Dawg was, and confused as to why Mad Dawg decided to continue trying to be a hero.

"Look Akande." Mad Dawg said flatly. "Are you here to kill me? Or to offer me a job you know I'm going to refuse, leading to you and I beating the shit out of each other? If it's either one of those options, do me a favor and piss off."

Akande didn't respond, then he sat down on one of the stools, sighing himself.

"How do you know my real name?" Akande asked, changing the topic, hoping to maybe get Mad Dawg a little less… hostile. "You've said it multiple times now, how did you learn it? From Morrison? Or from files from your friends?"

"Vialli." Mad Dawg said coolly, and couldn't help but smirk when he saw genuine surprise on Akande's face.

"Ex…excuse me?" He finally said with a slight stammer.

"Vialli told me." Mad Dawg stated.

"Are we… thinking of the same person?" Akande asked, a slight stutter in his voice.

"I dunno. How many people named Vialli have you thrown off of bridges?" Mad Dawg asked, annoyed.

"How do you know about that?" Akande asked, eyes narrowing dangerously. He made sure NO ONE would have seen him kill Vialli, Mad Dawg had to be bluffing.

"He landed on me!" Mad Dawg exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air.

"…what?"

"Yeah, weird ain't it?" Mad Dawg said. "So, I was running through Venice like a year or two ago, and I'm jamming to some music, then as I'm coming up on a bridge, some dude just falls outta the sky and lands on me."

Akande didn't respond, for the first time in possibly ever, he didn't know how. On the one hand, he wanted to outright laugh uncontrollably at the pure bad luck of it all, but on the other hand, Vialli may have told him something important. The confusion was clear to Mad Dawg, who slid him a mug of coffee. He looked down at it and took a sip, thinking it over.

"Well…" He said, trying to find his words.

"In case you're wondering, when he landed on me, and it shattered his spine and his ribs went into his lungs. When I pulled myself together, he was babbling about 'Aku' until his said 'Doomfist'. Then he managed to say 'Akande' then he died, pretty sure his lungs filled with fluid or something and he died. So, I got the _HELL_ outta there."

"You didn't contact the authorities?" Akande asked, listening to Mad Dawg's story.

"I was running form my own problems at the time." Mad Dawg frowned. "I wanted to get away from everything, and having some random guy land on me? I assumed it was Yakuza or something and knew better than to get involved. Also, I was at the bottom of a rocky crevice, cell service was sketchy, and I used all my minutes, so…"

"Mm." Akande nodded, taking a drink form the coffee, not sure of how to react. Mad Dawg leaned against the counter and didn't say anything, looking around the shop, seeming to be thinking about other things. After another few moments, he needed to say something.

"Sombra didn't betray you."

"Excuse me?" Akande asked.

"I know it may seem like it, but Sombra didn't betray you. She helped me because I offered her the proof of her innocence. As for why she tried to save me, I dunno. I always assumed she'd shoot me in the back at the end of the day."

"We had a feeling you were forcing her into helping you." Akande replied. "We also know you knew we were watching at some points."

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded, a slight roll of his eyes. "How much did you see?"

"Not as much as we wanted." Akande said, slightly moving his mug around. Surprisingly, he sighed slightly and looked to Mad Dawg, seemed saddened. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Mad Dawg said, his eyes going wide with the confusion pretty much _anyone_ would have in this situation.

"We didn't see much, but we saw some of what happened in King's Row. What Virus did there was inhuman." Akande explained himself, his tone seemingly saddened, and yet with a tone of respect. "Sombra explained to us-"

 _S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T. S**T._ Began immediately running through Mad Dawg's head. How much had Sombra told them?! If Talon knew about the Omnic Blackout. This was gonna get _**BAD**_.

"…that he blamed you for the death of his sister when the blackout hit." Akande finished his explanation. Looking directly at Mad Dawg.

He _**KNEW**_ **.**

 _Sombra. I'm going to dismember you and defecate on your corpse..._ Mad Dawg thought, his mind running around thinking of an answer, while also trying to contain a mixture of animalistic fury and white-girl-at-a-horror-movie-fear. He also remembered what happened at the ware house months ago, he had become some sort of… animal. And he didn't want that to happen here.

"I'm not going to tell anyone about it." Doomfist added.

"W..what?"

"She had files and documents about you from Virus. I saw them, and know what you did when you were young. But I don't consider you responsible for the blackout."

"Why?" Mad Dawg asked, his fear suddenly slipping away, replaced with a cynical feeling all throughout his body. THIS was definitely a lie, then something clicked in his brain. "Hang on. If you _really_ want me to join your ranks, why not blackmail me with the information? Or send it to Overwatch so they'll never allow me to return? Wouldn't that be more beneficial for you?"

"In almost any other case, it would." Akande began. "But in this case, I have no quarrel with you."

"Sure." Mad Dawg said flatly. Rolling his eyes. "Forgive me if I don't believe the psychopathic mass-murdering terrorist when he says he doesn't want me dead after trying to kill me several times."

"I could say the same thing about you." Akande shrugged.

Mad Dawg's eyes went huge. He was frozen in place, there was nothing he could say in response. Akande was right. His whole body seemed to shut down, defeated.

"Yeah…" He finally sighed. "Yeah, you're right."

The two sat silently again, Akande taking another sip of the coffee, and Mad Dawg was left feeling _crushed_. In a way, Doomfist had just won, that was it. Boom. Done. That's it folks. What could he possibly say in response, and _WHY_ was Doomfist not using this against him?!

"Those things you did, you didn't know their effects." Akande explained. "You couldn't've known what would happen. According to Virus' files, you were 'trying to be a hero'. As for why I'm not telling Overwatch, well, one, they'd never believe me, and two, what reason do I have to? Even if I use the information to blackmail you into joining us, what's to keep you from killing everyone and running off again? You're clearly strong enough to, and third, using those files as blackmail would give you incentive to hunt us down one-by-one and kill us all."

 _Huh._ Mad Dawg thought. _That… actually makes sense._

"I should thank you, actually." Akande spoke up again. "If it wasn't for you, one of our best agents would be dead."

"Yeah, you guys kinda suck that way." Mad Dawg commented, his personality returning. "That's another reason why I'm not interested in joining you guys. Someone makes a mistake or a lie is spread about them and _BOOM!_ You're dead. I mean, how many agents have you killed because someone wrote a joke in the company email?"

"There is no room for mistakes, they are signs of weakness." Akande countered, seeming more like the Doomfist Mad Dawg knew and hated. "And to answer your question, one. And we only did it because he was an worthless as you put it, 'asshole' and no one liked him, removing him made things easier."

"No, you didn't. Reaper's still with you guys." Mad Dawg immediately quipped, refusing to let another chance to dump all over Reaper pass. "But back to my point. She didn't mess up, and you were probably gonna kill her for something she didn't do." Mad Dawg re-iterated his point.

"And thanks to you, we didn't. You saved us and you saved your friends at Overwatch." Akande said, trying to get his point across.

"Yeah… them…" Mad Dawg muttered, his tone and reaction revealing more than he should have.

"So, the rumors were true." Akande said, as if confirming something. "After all the blood you shed, all the missions you completed, Overwatch threw you to the curb when they were done with you."

"No!" Mad Dawg snapped. "God almighty no! Things got… complicated when Hakim showed up and sent everything into a tail spin! All this crap _happened_ because of him!" Only now did Mad Dawg see that Akande was shockingly calm, either Mad Dawg was playing right into his hand (ba dum crash!) or maybe he more complex than Mad Dawg thought.

"If were being honest, that's something I respect about you." Akande suddenly said, seeming genuine in his tone.

"What's what now?" Mad Dawg said, taken aback by the… compliment?

"You're a survivor." Akande simply said. "No matter the scenario, you refused to give up. You were mutilated, tortured, poisoned, shot, stabbed, and God knows what else, but you refused to give up. You rose from the dirt the world tried to bury you in and refused to step aside for anyone. You hunted a man all across the world after hearing a simple phrase. You fought your way through **THREE** heavily guarded buildings single-handily, and when you did have help, it seemed more like you were helping them."

Mad Dawg still didn't seem convinced, so Akande continued.

"You built a life for yourself from the ruins we left you in. Almost anyone else in the circumstances you were in would've died or given up after just a fraction of the things you went through. Yet you never did!"

Mad Dawg looked quizzically at Akande, then down at the ground, then back to Akande.

"If we're being honest…" Mad Dawg began. "You were the one I had the most respect for. Y'know, outta all the assholes I've had to deal with from Talon."

"Really?" Akande said, genuinely intrigued, but ignoring the 'Asshole' comment. "Why would that be?"

"Because I understand what you want." Mad Dawg stated, then paused before beginning to explain. "When it comes to the others, let's be honest, my relationship status with them are freakin' dumpster fires! Widowmaker hates everyone, and she seems to hate me more than everyone else, except for maybe Tracer. Sombra you could argue we _may_ be some sort of friends, but even then, I'm not going to a party if she invites me, Moria… well. That's pretty-self-explanatory, Hakim's… well. He's dead, and Reaper shoots at me every. Single. Time. He sees me." Mad Dawg paused and took a drink of a soda he had nearby.

"And then there's their motives. Reaper wants to be an edge lord who kills people, Widowmaker… Man, I have _**NO CLUE**_ what her deal is, Moria wants to play God, and Sombra's… well, Sombra. Then there's you." Mad Dawg continued. "Ask any of your agents what they want, and it'll change, but with you, it's clear what you want. I don't agree with it, but at least you have some sort of end goal. You want power, you want the world to be strong, for the powerful to live, and the weak to die." He paused, making sure Akande was listening, and yes, he was. "Admittedly you're kind of an asshole because of that, but still. I understand you. I understand why you think the way you do, and why you want what you want. There's no hidden message, no 'other part' just Doomfist. And as weird as it sounds, I respect that." He stopped for some breath before finishing with: "Also, you tried _talking_ to me whenever we run into one another. Sure, we fight, but you don't shoot me, or stab me, or poison me, or drug me, or throw cows at me, or smash me over the head with tombstones, or throw smoothies at me… What the actual hell is my life?!"

It's one of adventure, oddities, and random encounters.

 _I wasn't asking you._

"That's a fair point." Akande nodded, seeming genuinely surprised and with a slight amount of respect in his eyes.

"So… why'd you come here?" Mad Dawg finally asked the one thing he was surprised he hadn't asked yet. "You could've sent a letter or just ignored me because I left on my own free will the other night. Why did you of all… of you guys." He said, trying not to use the 'T' word to loudly. "Come here? Was it really just to tell me to piss off? Or was it to try and recruit me again?"

"At this point in time, we know you won't join us. That's actually another reason I respect you, loyalty is a rare thing nowadays, and to see such loyalty even to those who hurt you is something surprising." Akande replied. "I'm not here on behalf of Talon at all, I'm here of my own intentions, for a different reason. I wanted to offer you something."

"You can't give me anything I want Doomfist." Mad Dawg shook his head.

Akande took a slip of paper from his shirt pocket and set it down, sliding it across the counter.

"I know who you're looking for, they won't be there forever. If you want to find them, this will tell you where to go." Akande said, standing up and walking towards the door. "Thanks for the coffee."

Once he was gone, Mad Dawg looked at the paper, frowning at the address.

 _Do I wanna do this?_ He thought. _I mean… *Sigh* Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna do this…_

Every fibre of his body was screaming that this wasn't a good idea, but once again, Mad Dawg refused to listen to common sense. He went back to putting away some more dishes before looking at his phone.

 **Meanwhile…**

"That was a good movie." Lena said as she, Hana and Hanzo walked back to the video store. Hana and Lena had rented _World of Warcraft: The Lynch King's Armageddon_ a few days earlier (after their conversation last chapter) and now were going back to return it. Hanzo was there because… I dunno. I needed another character in this part of the chapter. As the three of them entered, they set the video down on the counter and started looking around at the store.

"So, have you heard anything from Cruz?" Lena asked.

"He sent us a message, saying things were fine on his end." Hanzo commented, looking at a selection of martial arts films, one causing him to pause, the title was _The Dragon Brother's Legacy_. He unconsciously frowned at the title, it brought a series of less than pleasurable memories back into the forefront of his mind.

"That's good to hear." Hana smiled. She wouldn't admit it, but she enjoyed having Lució and Mad Dawg around. Without them, Junkrat was the closest member of Overwatch to her age, and it was kinda hard to find something for the two of them to do that didn't involve explosions or breaking the law.

"So, is there anything about another Warcraft movie being made?" Lena asked.

"Rumor is that _Legion_ is next." Hana shrugged, looking at the movies on the rack.

"Okay."

"I'm not sure though, Mad Dawg was the one who always seemed to know what was going on with movies and such."

The woman behind the counter gave a slight gasp and looked at Hana as if she had seen a ghost. She wore a hoodie with a purple hood and her hair was in dreads.

"I'm sorry… But… did you say 'Mad Dawg'?" She asked.

"Uh… yeah?" Hana replied somewhat awkwardly.

"Like, little guy, kinda psychotic, heals really fast, talks to someone who isn't there?" She continued with a dead-on explanation of Mad Dawg, her eyes growing wide, hope apparent in them.

"Yeah. He…he's not a kid… but yeah."

"Oh…ohmygod…" She whimpered, tears forming in her eyes. "No… no. It's not true!"

"Are you alright?" Lena asked, noticing how distressed she seemed.

"…It can't be! He's dead! We saw him die!" She exclaimed in shock.

"Hey Sitara. You alright?" a man asked, walking in from another room, then saw the others. "Holy crap. You're Hana Song!"

"Hiya." She said with a smile.

"Marcus, they say they've seen Mad Dawg." Sitara said.

"What?" Marcus said, turning to the others again. "You…you've seen MD?"

Lena and Hanzo looked to one another, slightly confused, then Lena opened her bag and dug for a moment. Pulling out a picture of her, Mad Dawg, Pharah, McCree and Genji. She handed it over to Marcus, who looked at it. Then handed it to Sitara, while almost pacing back and forth, trying to say something, but nothing came out.

"It's impossible…" Sitara repeated herself, still in disbelief.

"He lived in a train yard. If that means anything." Hanzo added, looking over from where he was.

"Holy crap he's alive!" Marcus exclaimed excitedly. "I _KNEW_ he'd go back to the train yard eventually! It's where we found him!"

"Hold on." Lena said, getting the duo's attention. "You… knew Mad Dawg as a child?"

"Yes!" Marcus exclaimed again.

"They must be his other friends." Hanzo stated. "The ones he spoke of."

"I'm gonna be honest here." Hana suddenly stated. "This seems… Odd. That you guys would know our teammate."

"His favourite food is bacon tacos, he has a stuffed dog named Ashardalon, he hates coffee and he talks to someone who isn't there." Sitara listed off another round of facts that only someone who knew Mad Dawg could know, leaving the three heroes in astonishment.

"Before we go on, we should probably get this outta the way, I'm Marcus." Marcus introduced himself. "She's Sitara."

"Hey." Sitara said, still looking at the picture.

"Oh! Well, I'm Lena." Lena said with a smile.

"I'm Hana."

"And my name is Hanzo." Hanzo nodded.

"Okay, now that introductions are outta the way, how do you three know Mad Dawg?" Marcus asked. "And how do we know it's the same Mad Dawg we're thinking of."

Hana thought for a moment. Mad Dawg had never said the names of his friends, except for… Wait a second… She pulled out he phone and opened a video of Mad Dawg from the night of the Office Christmas Party, after Mad Dawg, Reindhardt, McCree and Torbjörn all got smashed, he had started talking nonsensically. But there was one thing he said that for some reason, she was only remembering now.

"So… I am really… friggin'… druuuunk…" He drawled in the video, making the others turn to her confused. "And… I wanna sayyy… Marcus Holo-rolo? I love you mannnnn… I'm sorry for what happene-" He gurgled and passed out as the video ended.

"Yeah. That's Mad Dawg." Sitara said, shocked.

"You were his old friends." Hanzo said, putting it all together.

"I don't believe it! He's alive!" Marcus shouted happily, it seemed like he was going to start dancing. "Where'd you last see him? Is he still with you?!"

Hana looked to Lena, and she sighed.

"Well… that's… a loaded answer."

Immediately, the spark of energy in Marcus' eyes died.

"Is… He's…" He stuttered.

"…we're not sure." Lena said. "He disappeared a few months ago. We've searched everywhere, but we can't find a trace of him."

"Hang on." Sitara said. "Are you guys… Overwatch?"

The three heroes looked to one another, as if silently trying to find an agreement on if they should be honest or not. Marcus looked at them quizzically then his eyes widened again.

"No... No way!" He said energetically. "You guys are Overwatch?! You guys are awesome!"

"Really? Thanks!" Hana said with a smile. "But…um… He was with us for a while, but then he disappeared."

"What happened?" Sitara asked, trying to get to the point.

"Something happened, we don't know what, but Mad Dawg suddenly became incredibly paranoid, and eventually just dropped off." Hanzo explained, deciding to leave out some of the more… colourful facts. They may be Mad Dawg's old friends, but that didn't mean he trusted them right away.

"Did he leave anything behind? Any message, any sort of clue?" Marcus asked.

"No. That's the issue." Hana frowned. "Actually… now that we know you're his old friends, did he reach out to you recently? Or do you have any idea where he might be?"

"Nah man. He ain't reached out to us." Marcus shook his head. "And if he reached out to the others, they ain't said anything."

"I mean, Kenny I could understand not saying much, but no way J wouldn't immediately tell us…" Sitara muttered, thinking it over. She wasn't super trustful of these guys at the moment, but they seemed to want to help, and that was enough to at least get her to listen. "Hang on… The old base! I bet that's where he's hiding!"

"Shottie not telling them!" Hana said nervously, backing up slightly.

"Telling us what?" Sitara asked, her tone seeming distrusting, slightly agitated when she saw that the others were hesitant to answer. "We've known him a hell of a lot longer than you guys, so if you know something-"

"It's gone." Hanzo finally broke the silence.

"WHAT?!" Marcus and Sitara shouted simulationusly. "WHAT THE HELL DID THAT IDIOT DO?!"

"Don't you _dare_ blame him for that!" Lena snapped, feelings of friendship and some other, somewhat maternal feelings suddenly kicking into full force. "You have _NO IDEA_ what he's been through! He was attacked and nearly killed in that train yard!"

Hanzo face palmed audibly while Hana groaned. Lena paused and then realized she had just revealed way too much. Marcus' jaw dropped and Sitara eyes widened in shock and fear.

"He what?!" Marcus exclaimed, jumping over the counted and grabbing Lena, shaking her in a fit of terror. "What's going on?! Is he okay?! Who tried to kill him?!" After finishing, he realized what he was doing and let her go, backing up slightly. "Er… sorry."

"You'd better tell us just what the hell is going on, what you've done to Mad Dawg and what's happening to him." Sitara demanded, and it was clear they were deadly serious. Hana looked to Lena, who looked to Hanzo, who nodded.

"Do you have a place where we could talk?" Lena asked, looking to Sitara. "It's a long story."

 _Three quarters of an explanation later… While leaving out some of the more… Unsettling details. Namely the fight, the Junker controlled house, him going berserk on Mercy, and the Junker Attack on the Train Yard_

"So, all this time, the kid's been rolling with Overwatch?" Marcus said, taking it all in. "Damn. That's impressive."

"But why would he not try and call us?" Sitara asked, still unable to understand that.

"He said something along the lines of he screwed up and couldn't go back. We told you what happened to us, what happened to you?" Hana stated matter-of-factly.

"Well…" Marcus began. "One day the kid showed up, screaming bloody murder about something. We had to hit him over the head with a brick to knock him out to calm him down. When he woke up, he began going off about something he did, and how "she was dead because of me"."

"Did he say who? Or what happened?" Hanzo asked, listening closely.

"No." Sitara shook his head. "We all thought he had a bad trip or something. Not long after, a fire broke out in our home. We all got out okay…" Sitara's eyes watered somewhat. "One of our friends… he got trapped. Mad Dawg ran headlong into the fire, he threw him out… but he didn't get out." She paused for breath, wiping tears from her eyes. Marcus put his hand on her back.

"Hey… it's okay. I can continue if you need." He said reassuringly.

"No. I got this." Sitara looked back up. "The whole house came down on him. When we finally cleared the wreckage out, we couldn't found this burnt… mutilated body. The face was burned beyond recognition… We all thought it was him."

"Maybe… maybe he escaped." Marcus said, thinking it over. "Or… or the kid could heal! Maybe he healed form those burns!"

"No one could've survived those burns." Sitara said, shaking her head. "Let alone survive that much rock and steel crushing him."

"…He never said what happened." Hana said. "Only that he wanted to apologize, but didn't think he could."

"Yeah, that sounds like Mad Dawg." Sitara nodded. "Ever since we found him, he had a hard time apologizing to people he hurt. He felt so bad about it, he got choked up on his words."

"How young was he when you found him?" Hanzo asked.

"Uh, seven, eight? Maybe nine." Marcus said, thinking about it. "Not that old. But the kid was like family to us."

"I'm sorry about my outburst earlier." Lena said awkwardly. "I didn't realize how long you knew him."

"Yeah… the kid was little when we found him." Sitara nodded. "I guess… It's just… After so long… It's been nearly eight years, and suddenly… the kid's alive."

"Man, if I hadn't seen the stuff I have over the past while, I'd say you were all lying to us." Marcus added. "And part of me doesn't wanna believe it, but…"

"It's Mad Dawg." Hanzo finished his thought. "At first nothing seems to make sense with him. Then you realize… Nothing about him makes sense, and that's what makes sense."

"Damn right." Marcus nodded in agreement. "Man, I loved that guy… Even after what happened…"

"What happened?" Hana asked, no one knew what Mad Dawg had done that had caused the whole past few months to be so bad. Marcus looked to Sitara who had an uncertain look on her face, then she nodded.

"Well, we don't know what caused him to get so paranoid all of a sudden. But he and two of the others got into scrap… It turned real ugly." Marcus explained. "Then the fire hit…"

"Do… the others." Lena began, thinking it over. "Know Mad Dawg's alive?"

"Doubt it." Sitara shook her head. "Like we said, they'd probably say something if he reached out to them. But back to the one thing you haven't explained. What happened to the Train Yard?"

"I'm assuming you know who the Junkers are?" Hanzo asked.

"Yeah."

"Someone put a hit on him. They… mistook him for someone else, and the Junkers were sent after him. They… they destroyed the place, when we arrived, there were burned bodies everywhere, and no sign of him. It's the last we saw of him."

"Holy crap man…" Marcus breathed, putting his head in his hands. "And he…?"

"We believe he managed to escape, but that was the last time we saw him. Three months ago." Hanzo replied.

"Okay, we need to get the others." Sitara said, suddenly formulating a plan. "We need to get them, and go back to the Train Yard. Something tells me there's a lot you missed."

"Okay then." Lena nodded. "Where are the others?"

"Well, two of them are working at Blizzard…" Marcus began.

"Dibs!" Hana exclaimed.

"Okay… and the other guy… is in Junkertown." Marcus finished.

"Oh boy…" Hana commented, a crushing sense of dread flowing through all the heroes.

 **A.N. And that's all folks! Mad Dawg's "Friends" are finally revealed! As for what Doomfist offered Mad Dawg… Well, you're gonna have to wait! Or theorize in the comments, go ahead! I DARE you! ;) But don't worry, The Crimson Phoenix isn't done yet, Mad Dawg's still got some issues to work through, Mad Dawg's other friends are gonna find out what's been happening, and yes, Brigitte** _ **IS**_ **going to show up soon, just not in the way you're probably thinking of. As always, Review with what you think and come back soon! Also, a prequel of sorts to A Dawg's Tale is in the works, JSYN…**


	28. Old Friends Part II

**A.N. This chapter contains some very sensitive material. Just a heads up, after we're done in Blizzard HQ, you may wanna skip the rest of the chapter.**

 _ **Two Days Later… (from the end of the previous chapter, not from me writing that chapter, it's been like a week or something… Anyhow.)**_

"How about… _The Pandarian Legacy_?"

"The company did a Pandarian expansion two expansions ago."

"Well, how about _Blood Elves Temple_?"

"Mm. Could work, but I feel like the execs would veto the idea. Too dark."

"Ugh. Right, okay. How about _Scarecrow's Festival Of Fear_?"

"That would probably be a seasonal event within the expansion."

"Fair point. So, how about _The Mines of Stormgarde_?"

"I like that one. Write that down."

"Okay… How about… _The Dark Elf's Curse_?"

"Do we have a Dark Elf protagonist or antagonist?"

"…shit. Okay then, how about… _The Hydra's Temple_?"

"That could work."

Hana followed Marcus through a series of cubicles at Blizzard Headquarters towards two more of Mad Dawg's old 'friends'. Several people stopped to ask her for pictures or an autograph, to which she was more than happy to oblige. Finally, the duo arrived at a cubicle covered with post-it notes and crushed cans lying around. Two men were talking and didn't seem to notice them. One of them wore a green hoodie and wore a beanie and was busy typing on a computer while the other man, was throwing darts at a board. His hair and beard were grey and in dreads. He feet were kicked up on a table and he was wearing sandals.

"Yo. Josh, Ray. You two got a sec?" Marcus said, leaning against the wall of the cubicle, getting the attention of the two guys.

"Oh, hey Marcus!" The older man said with a smirk. "What's happening? Also, who's she?"

"This is Hana Song. She's known as D. Va online." Marcus said, pointing to Hana.

"That's D. Va?" The younger man said. "Huh. Only ever heard of her. Uh. Nice to meet you."

"Hiya." She said with a smile.

"I'm Ray, that's Josh." Ray said, pointing to the other guy, who glanced over briefly before going back to work. "It's nice t'meetcha miss Song. The boys in marketing are always talking about you." He looked to Marcus then added: "Don't take this the wrong way Marcus. But did something happen with you and Sitara? Or…"

"What?! No!" Marcus exclaimed. "C'mon man! Really?"

"Hey, I'm just askin'." Ray said, raising his hands, his tone seeming laid back and somewhat disconnected form the fever pace which surrounded them.

"Look, we need to talk, in private if possible."

"About what?"

"It's…" Marcus began before he shook his head. "Look man. Do you have a place where can talk or not? You're gonna wanna hear this, it's about the team."

Ray gave him a confused look before looking back to Josh, who shrugged and saved the work he was currently improving.

"Come with us." Ray said, picking himself up and leading the duo down the hall and into a meeting room. Josh closed the door behind them as Marcus, Ray and Hana all sat down around the table.

"So, what's this all about?" Josh asked, while Ray took a donut from the centre of the table. "And for the record, be more careful. The 'Team' is what nearly got us all killed that one time."

"I know. I know." Marcus said, somewhat annoyed at the fact that they might have thought he forgot about that.

"Well… A friend of mine went AFK recently." Hana began, feeling uncertain as to how they would react to the news. "And… he was a friend of yours."

"What?" Ray asked, genuinely confused. "The hell are you talking about? I thought you were here because of a new sponsorship or something."

Hana bit her lip then looked directly at Ray and Josh.

"Did you know a guy with the real-life user name Mad Dawg?" She asked innocently.

Ray's eyes went almost comically wide as his body froze and his jaw (and donut) dropped. All the colour draining from his face while Josh's eyes widened and he looked to Marcus for context to the question. It seemed like they had both seen a ghost, and to be honest… That wasn't too far off the answer.

"How do you know that name?" Ray finally asked, a hint of anger in his voice.

"Apparently he's alive." Marcus said, still finding the news hard to believe.

"Th..that's…that's im…impossible." Josh stammered. "We…we…we…"

"Holy shit." Ray breathed. "No… no you've gotta be wrong. No damn way! We buried him!"

Hana dug through her purse and pulled out a picture she picked up form Overwatch HQ the other day. It was her, Lucio, Junkrat and Mad Dawg fighting piggyback gladiator-style. She handed the picture over to Ray who looked closely than handed it to Josh.

"Well… that's my jacket." Ray said, trying to understand everything. "But there's no way the kid survived after all this time…"

"He was living in a train yard." Hana commented, getting their attention but also kind of nervous. "He uh…he's OP because he heals really fast and he's kinda nuts."

"Sonuvabitch." Ray said eyes narrowing. "Where is he?!"

"Well, that's why we're here." Marcus said. "Apparently, the kid was rolling with Overwatch, then just dropped off the face of the earth."

"Wasn't Overwatch disbanded years ago?" Josh asked, looking at the picture.

"You're behind on the news kid." Ray said, looking to Josh. "They came back a few years ago."

"Oh."

"We're not sure if this is the same Mad Dawg we knew, but we're trying to find him. We were wondering if you've heard anything from him."

"If he did contact us, you'd know by now." Josh plainly said.

"That's what we figured." Hana nodded. "But we're searching for him, so we thought you might know some places he's run off to."

"Did you check the train yard?" Ray asked.

"Well… T-Bone… It's, uh. It's not there anymore…It was destroyed."

"Excuse me?" Ray said, not sure if what he just heard was true.

"So, let me explain. apparently, he was living there for a while, and the train yard got attacked by Junkers, because he was mistaken for someone else. And apparently they raised the place to the ground." Marcus explained, rubbing his arm while trying not to make eye contact with T-Bone.

T-Bone didn't say a word. He simply stood up, left the meeting room, and then the sound of a chair being thrown followed by a long, long, list of curse words was screamed in anger. After a few moments, the door opened and he walked back in and sat down.

"Okay…" Josh said, gathering his thoughts. " **WHY** were Junkers after him? He never went near Junkertown."

"Your guess is as good as ours." Marcus replied. "Like I said, I don't fully know what's happening."

"…we're going to the train yard." T-Bone suddenly declared, getting up and walking for the door. "And if Mad Dawg's alive, I'm gonna kill him."

"Count me in." Marcus nodded. "The asshole owes me five bucks!"

"That's your biggest concern? A debt he inquired years ago?" Josh asked in his dry tone. "Not the fact that he may have somehow defied death itself?"

"Yes." Marcus said, pointing to Josh. "Because five dollars is five dollars."

Hana looked to Josh with a confused look, and Josh shrugged as if to say: _This is how we work._

"So, you'll help us?" Hana asked hopefully.

"We'll help you, on one condition." T-Bone said matter-of-factly "And this isn't negotiable."

"What?"

"If we end up working with agents of Overwatch, you don't ask about anything we don't tell you about."

"Done!"

 _ **Meanwhile In Numbani…**_

Mad Dawg was sitting on a rooftop in his Crimson Phoenix costume, calmly eating an ice cream cone. Earlier in the day he ended up landing near a kid's soccer game and decided to stay and watch. Both teams were ecstatic for a 'superhero' to show up and watch their game. Mad Dawg loved this, he was able to be a hero, but he didn't have to break his deal with Doomfist. He thought back to their conversation two days ago, he hadn't gone yet, and he knew he should. But for now, he was content. He currently was jamming out to Lúcio's new music, Cruz had really outdone himself this time! Casting another glance over the city, he noticed someone on a rooftop. At first, he thought they were an electrician or something like that, but then he noticed they seemed nervous. Mad Dawg pulled a pair of binoculars out and looked at the person. A young woman seemed to be inching towards the edge of the rooftop.

 _Is she… Oh God…_ Mad Dawg realized what she was thinking about doing. Activating his jetpack, he flew across the town and landed on the fire escape on the side of the building. Making his way up, Mad Dawg pulled himself up onto the roof and slowly approached the woman.

"Hey there." He said in a kind tone. The woman gasped and turned around, surprised. "From what I can tell, that's a long fall. I wouldn't recommend finding out just how far it is."

"Leave me alone." The woman mumbled.

"Listen, I understand I'm probably the worst person to talk to, but… are you okay?"

"What do you think?!" The woman snapped, tears rolling down her face.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't've asked that." Mad Dawg shook his head. "But I know I should say this, it ain't worth it."

"What?" The woman asked wiping tears from her eyes.

"Sometimes people will tell you that those who do this were too strong for too long, or maybe it's easier than living with whatever's been done to you. You might think this is the best solution for you, it's the easy way out. That the while world will be better off without you, that's it's just one-in-nine-billion. But it ain't worth it."

"Why do you care?" The woman asked, her tone still upset.

"Well, for one, I'm the protector of Numbani." Mad Dawg said, and the woman scoffed at that. "And two."

Mad Dawg lifted up on of his sleeves revealing the scars on his arm.

"I know what it's like."

The woman didn't reply, quietly looking in shock at Mad Dawg's arm.

"They're not _all_ from what you think." Mad Dawg began to explain. "That one was from when I cut myself after I broke a pickle jar trying to open it-" The woman couldn't help but laugh at that. "Hey! They're harder to open than you think!"

The woman couldn't help but laugh out loud at that, but quickly stopped.

"I'm…I'm sorry." She said quietly.

"It's fine." Mad Dawg smirked. "It IS pretty funny. Anyhow, that one came from an ungrateful cat I got out of a tree, that one came from when I tried to create a new type of dance. Knife-ballet."

The woman stared in shock at Mad Dawg who nodded.

"Yes. I tried that, and yes. I was very drunk." Finally, he pointed to one on his wrist. "And that one, that came from when I was wasn't thinking straight."

Mad Dawg stopped, looking away unsure of if this was the right thing to do, and the woman looked away awkwardly, neither one knowing what else to say.

"Well, I've given you my case. I'll leave you now." Mad Dawg said as he began to walk awa- WHAT THE F**K ARE YOU DOING?

 _What?_

WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. HELL. You're just gonna LEAVE a woman who's ready to-

"E..excuse me."

"Yeah?" Mad Dawg said, stopping.

"I'm sorry." The woman said. "I'm sorry you got attacked by a cat, and that you hurt yourself on pickles… and… I'm sorry for making you think you had to solve my problems. If it's the last thing I'm gonna say, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you waste your time trying to help me."

"Ma'am, _Son of The Mask_ was a waste of my time. Getting to meet someone new is something that always makes my day a bit better." He walked back to the edge of the roof and sat down, his feet dangling over the edge. "This is incredibly wrong to ask, but if you are gonna do it, why are you gonna do it? What happened to you?"

"What's it matter to you?" The woman asked, seeming upset again.

"I dunno. Just thought maybe getting it off your chest might help." Mad Dawg shrugged.

"I…I…Someone I thought cared for me left. He just used me for some twisted reason. Then my father passed away a few months ago. And…and…Everyone I thought I could rely on just…abandoned me. I tried to pick up the pieces, but I had no one, I tried making new bonds, but no one was interested. At the end of the day, I figured everyone would be better off without me. I mean, after all that, what else is there for me?" She paused for a moment before adding. "You must think I'm crazy if you're trying to help me."

Mad Dawg paused, trying to think of how to respond, and finally he nodded, as if acknowledging her.

"Damn. I'm sorry." Mad Dawg said sadly. "I know the feeling though, someone very close to me just turned their back on me. I got screwed over by someone else, and hey, if it makes you feel better, I never knew my family."

"Really?" The woman asked, genuinely surprised.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg sad, slapping his knees as he leaned back taking a breath in. "Never met em'. Grew up an orphan, lived on my own for nearly a decade. Then I finally found some people who I could call family… but in the end, it wasn't meant to be."

Once again, the two went quiet, neither one knowing what to say next. Finally, Mad Dawg looked back out over the city.

"Listen, if you still wanna jump, go ahead. I won't try to stop you anymore. Just know that there's always someone to talk to. Even if he's a weirdo in a bird costume."

Mad Dawg pulled his phone out and began texting someone as he walked away. Leaving the woman wondering what to do. Once he was about ten feet away, Mad Dawg stopped and sighed, knowing he couldn't just leave.

"Hey, there's a really good coffee house nearby. You wanna go get some?" Mad Dawg asked pointing over his shoulder.

"Um…okay." The woman answered, still uncertain, but following Mad Dawg over to the fire escape. After the two got down onto the sidewalk, the woman stopped and looked around, as if realizing something. Mad Dawg stopped and waited, but the woman didn't say anything. Mad Dawg got onto his boke and motioned for her to get on. Slowly but surely the woman got on and MD drove on back to the coffee house.

"The place seems closed." The woman commented.

"I know the guy who runs the place, he's fine if we stop by." Mad Dawg lied as he unlocked the door.

Half an hour passed as Mad Dawg and the woman silently drank coffee, neither one trying to make much conversation.

"So, why do you fight crime?" The woman asked, albeit awkwardly.

"Well, I was bitten by a radioactive phoenix, and struck by lightning all while being run over by a truck full of radioactive hamsters. All at the same time."

The woman gave him a blank look, but she also stifled a laugh, clearly not believing him.

"Eh, I put on the mask one night and went out as a joke. Stopped an attempted mugging and felt pretty good about it, so I guess I kept rolling with it. As time went on, the citizens of Numbani started to notice, and I guess they consider me a hero."

The woman smiled into her coffee slightly, but still seemed saddened. Mad Dawg jumped onto the counter and sat down, looking at the response on his phone. He gave a slight sigh and responded. Suddenly, he received another text and scowled at it.

"Hey." He said, getting the woman's attention. "You wanna go fight some crime?"

The woman gave him a genuinely confused look before answering.

"What?"

"I just got a tip on something that's going down." Mad Dawg said. "Some guy apparently has a habit of beating his son. I'm gonna drop by and see if it's true. You wanna join?"

"I..I.." The woman stuttered.

"You don't have to, but I'm gonna go..." Mad Dawg said. "I don't get how someone who can hurt someone they say they love… Like, did they ever really love you? Or..."

The woman thought it over, still not sure about if she wanted to or not, she shivered suddenly and wiped her eyes, and Mad Dawg realized it, a wave of guilt running down his spine.

"Oh…" Mad Dawg said, his mind connecting the dots. "You…"

"I don't wanna talk about it." The woman practically whimpered. "Like I said on the roof, someone I cared for used me… then when they were done…"

"It's okay." Mad Dawg said reassuringly. "You don't need to explain yourself to me."

The woman sniffed, wiping her eyes, then nodded.

"Do you have another mask?"

 _Two Minutes Later…_

"This isn't what I had in mind." The woman commented.

"Yeah, sorry, all I had was that paper bag." Mad Dawg said as he crouched next to the door, listening in to make sure they were at the right place. It didn't take long for him to hear someone yelling.

"YOU WORTHLESS BASTARD!" Followed by a heavy impact, and a young boy crying in pain. Without a second thought, Mad Dawg kicked the door open, startling the man. Mad Dawg paused for a moment as he saw the older man holding a young boy who had several bruises and a black eye. Who didn't have time to react as Mad Dawg grabbed him and threw him across the room and into the kitchen. As the man dragged himself up, Mad Dawg kicked him again, enjoying the pain that was clearly inflicted on him as his head slammed into the fridge.

"Knock, knock, thunder cock!" Mad Dawg shouted in his Crimson Phoenix voice, hoisting the man up. "You like hurting kids?"

Maybe it was all the blood on his face, but the man's face was incredibly red, and from the smell of it, he was drunk.

"Piss off…" The man garbled.

"Very poor choice of words." Mad Dawg scowled. He grabbed the man by the legs and lifted him up and slammed him back into the ground face-first. Cracking the tile and denting it with his face. For good measure, Mad Dawg curb-stomped him into the ground. Then grabbed a box of Lucio-Oh's from the pantry.

"Bag-Head!" He yelled before shoving his mouth full of cereal. "Everything alright?"

"Uh… yeah…" She replied, unsure of how to respond. "Things are okay. I think…"

The woman turned her attention to the small boy, gently picking him up and setting him on a couch and began trying to clean him up. Mad Dawg opened the freezer and grabbed an ice pack. Stepping on the man (intentionally), he tossed the ice pack to the woman.

"Use this." He instructed as he heard sirens approaching. The woman caught the bag and gently applied it to the young boy's face.

"Y…you…" He mumbled. "You're the Crimson Phoenix."

"Hey kid." He waved. Suddenly, the cops ran in through the door, weapons drawn looking around. "Hey cops."

"Phoenix?" One of them spoke up.

"Yup." Mad Dawg nodded. "Asshole's in there."

Two of the cops walked slowly in and handcuffed him and dragged him away, while the others tended to the boy. Mad Dawg motioned to the woman and ran off, grabbing her hand as the two ran out the back door.

"Phoenix?" The police chief asked, looking around until he heard the door slam. He looked over to where they ran off to, then shook his head.

"Should we go after them sir?" Another officer asked.

"No." The chief shook his head. "This is his way of being 'stealthy', also, we gotta make sure the kid is okay. Phoenix may have saved his life, let him have this."

On the Crimson ATV of Justice and Ass-Whopping's, Crimson Phoenix and his sort of sidekick Bag-Head drove down the road, away from the scene of their recent escapade.

"And that's how it's done." Mad Dawg finally spoke up.

"Wow… I feel…" She began.

"Yeah?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Alive!" The woman exclaimed. "I feel… Alive!"

"Awesome!" Mad Dawg smiled. "I wanna show you something… if you're up to it."

"Sure!"

About twenty minutes later, the two had left the city and were currently walking up a large hill. When they finally reached the top, a huge, single, old tree stood on the top. A gentle breeze rustling through the leaves. The woman pulled the bag off of her head and looked out over the view of Numabni's lights and sounds.

"Wow…" She finally said.

"Beautiful ain't it?" Mad Dawg said, before realizing he was looking at something else. "Oh. Uh… I wanted to show you this."

The woman glanced over and saw Mad Dawg was looking at the tree. She walked over and saw a sign was nailed into the tree. It read 'Months Survived' with three marks underneath it.

"Months survived?" The woman asked, confused. She looked at him for an answer, then heard something rattling above them. Looking up she saw a length of chain wrapped around a branch. She paused for a moment and then gasped loudly.

"You're not the only one who wants the pain to end." Mad Dawg said, no joy or feeling in his voice.

"Y..you…" The woman began.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. "Like I said, when I wound up here, I was in a really bad place. I tried it… I, uh… didn't know how to secure the chain. And I fell face first to the ground." Mad Dawg sighed, not enjoying recounting this specific event. "After I woke up, I decided I needed to be better, I couldn't let my past and fears control me anymore."

"And that's how the Crimson Phoenix came to be…" The woman concluded.

"Eh, not really." Mad Dawg shook his head. "That was in preparation for this year's Burning Man festival. And like I said, I went out as a joke, and never really stopped."

The two went silent, both thinking about their issues. Mad Dawg had WAY more to think about, but at the same time, it wouldn't help anyone to let the past control him. Sure, it controlled him in some ways, he couldn't use airlines or things like that, but at the same time. He didn't want to let his past mistakes run his future choices.

" _Speaking of choices…"_ He thought.

"You good?" He asked, turning to the woman.

"I don't know." The woman honestly answered. "I genuinely don't know."

"Then come with me. One last place, and I'll let you go." Mad Dawg said honestly. "It's not weakness to be unsure."

"…okay. One last stop." The woman nodded.

Five minutes later, they were driving through the streets again, it was quiet and it made the while city seem dark. But soon the sun would be rising, a new day, a new chapter.

"If we're being honest, I think you have a pretty good handle on things." The woman spoke up as they drove. "You and the rest of the world, are doing fine. And you'll do fine with or without me. You can let me off anywhere."

"No. I can't." Mad Dawg said as he stopped the ATV. "I'm smart enough to know I'm dumb enough to know that I can't help you. But they can."

"What?!" The woman exclaimed when she saw they were out front of a hospital. "You said you wanted to take me somewhere then you'd let me go!"

"I am. This is where we go our separate ways." Mad Dawg explained. "I've been texting the staff. They're expecting you."

The woman stared mouth agape at Mad Dawg. This is what he had been doing the while time?!

"And what if I don't want to go inside? Are you going to force me?" She suddenly asked, a mixture of anger and sadness clear in her voice.

"It's your life and your choice." Mad Dawg shrugged. "But I have a feeling that deep down, you want to go in."

She looked nervously from Mad Dawg to the door then back.

"Listen. I don't think you're crazy. I think you're strong, beautiful and any guy or girl who'd hurt you is a freakin' idiot. You're one of the nicest women I've met, but you need a little help. And I'm _**NOT**_ the guy to help you." He paused for a moment then took off his helmet, revealing his true face. "Whatever happens now is up to you."

The woman was taken aback by not only his words, but the un-masking. She didn't notice Mad Dawg put something in her hand. Looking down she saw a paper bag with eye holes. Finally, she got off the ATV, gave a slight nod to Mad Dawg, then hugged him.

"Thank you." She whispered.

Putting his helmet back on, Mad Dawg walked the woman into the hospital, where a nurse came and guided her down a hall, through two swinging doors until Mad Dawg couldn't see her anymore. Turning and leaving, Mad Dawg jumped back on the ATV and drove back to the tree, parking and making his way up the hill, Mad Dawg pulled a knife off of his belt and made a fourth mark as the sun began to rise over the city.

"To a new day." Mad Dawg said. Holding his flask up before pouring some out, and drinking the rest.

 **A.N. Listen, everyone suffers at some point in their life. It's gonna happen. And a large amount of people will contemplate suicide/self-harm because of whatever they're going through. An abusive relationship, bullying, general depression, loss of a family member, it doesn't matter. What does matter is that you don't suffer in silence. Mad Dawg and I aren't the right people to talk to about this (unless you need to) but there are people who can help. All you need to do is google 'Suicide Prevention Hotline' and call them. They work miracles. If you're still unsure, find someone you can trust, a friend, a parent, a pastor, anyone. And tell them what's going on. Don't be afraid. It's not weakness to admit you're scared or hurting. It's one of the bravest things you can do. It's scary, believe me, I know. And sometimes you might think no one will notice if you're gone, but they will. Trust me on that. Please, always remember that no matter what anyone says, no matter what you've gone through or are going through, there are people ready to help. And no matter what anyone says, I think you're an amazing person, and your life has value in ways you might not even know yet.**

 **-SkorchNTorch**

 **Next Time: Junkertown and An Unexpected Reunion**


	29. Old Friends Part III

**Okay, I've been meaning to respond to some reviews I've gotten. First of all:**

 **Ssnipex - That's what I was going for! I hope it hit you hard in the good way, not the bad way. It was a sort of personal chapter… But I digress, I'm glad you enjoyed it.**

 **Guest - Mad Dawg x Sombra? Never thought of that…** **I'll keep that in mind!**

 **Guest - The results are in for the tele-poll… It doesn't look good for those goons…**

 **MrFiretank – I have fun writing the Crimson Phoenix, he's kinda inspired by The Tick and a little bit of Spider-Man. Not really a hero with powers (aside from Mad Dawg's ability), but a hero who fights for what's right, and is more than willing to take a break and just talk things out.**

 **Anyhow, thanks to all of you for reading, following, favourite(ing), and reviewing. For a good long while, I PROMISE things will be a lot lighter (Aside from the first chunk of this chapter). More humor, more kind-hearted moments, a lighter story arc, and I probably won't go as heavyhearted as chapter 28 for a while. Anyhow, let's get on with the story.**

Mad Dawg stood outside a building, breathing irreverently. His hands shook slightly, with a fear he hadn't felt in a while. Very slowly he walked under the large arches and into the sizable courtyard, passing by people not much older than him, talking and laughing some reading while sitting on the edge of a fountain, and some heading to who knows where. One or two cast a glance his way but ultimately paid him no mind. For the first time in possibly ever, he blended in. He didn't stand out. (This may also have to do with the fact that he changed who he dressed drastically.)

 _Let's see how this goes…._ He thought, as he headed towards one particular building.

 _ **TWO DAYS LATER…**_

Marcus, Sitara, Josh and Ray walked through the halls of Overwatch HQ, it had taken the two teams about three days (and a lot of online messages) to set up a meeting and confirm that they might be the original team Mad Dawg had talked about before. And now, they were on their way through the base. Marcus seemed fascinated by everything he passed by. Ray seemed cynical as usual, but that was nothing new. Sitara seemed focused on finding Mad Dawg, and Josh was silent as usual.

"Dude." Marcus leaned over and whispered to Ray. "This is so awesome!"

"Don't forget what we did to them." Ray muttered back. "Hopefully they don't connect the dots…"

"So, you guys say you were the group Mad Dawg hung around with when he was younger?" Tracer asked as they walked.

"Yeah." Sitara nodded. "That's us."

"Well, we're far enough in, we need to tell you a few things." Tracer said, stopping. "And this is important."

"What's up?" Marcus asked.

"If we're gonna work together on this, you're gonna see some things here that you _CAN'T_ speak about openly. It's a security risk on both our parts."

The members of Dedsec looked to one another, as if having a silent conversation before they all nodded before turning back.

"Look, we're used to keeping secrets." Marcus stated coolly, as if this was nothing new. "Whatever it is, I'm sure we can-"

"Ah, Lena. Are these them?" Winston said, walking into the room. Causing the hackers to go dead silent in shock at the appearance of a giant talking gorilla.

"Um. Is that real?" Josh spoke up, pointing to Winston. Sitara froze, unsure of how to react. Ray blinked then took a flask out and took a drink, while Marcus was borderline freaking out at the sight of a giant talking gorilla.

"Dude! That… gorilla is… Talking!" He stuttered, trying to find his words, pointing at Winston with a shaking hand and body. Ray simply reached over and handed him his flask, which Marcus took and shakily took a sip from. "SO AWESOME!"

"Calm down Marcus." Ray said. "Considering who we're trying to find, would this be the weirdest thing you've seen?"

"Yes!" Marcus exclaimed. "That's a giant talking gorilla! How is this not the weirdest yet coolest thing you've seen?!"

"Maybe cause' I'mma little drunk…" Ray muttered before taking another quick drink. "It is pretty damn cool though, I'll give you that."

Winston wasn't sure how to respond. On the one hand (or paw) it was strange that people were reacting so strangely to him, but on the other hand. He couldn't help but smile slightly at their energy.

"So, um. My name is Winston." Winston introduced himself in his somewhat awkward way.

"That isn't possible." Josh finally spoke up, that being the only thing he could think of to say upon seeing a talking gorilla. "Scientifically… It…"

"That's cool." Sitara commented, deciding not to let them continue question the scientific working of the talking gorilla in front of her. Right now, she wanted to find Mad Dawg. "I'm Sitara."

"Yo, I'm Marcus." Marcus said, calming himself somewhat, but still thinking this was awesome.

"I'm Ray." Ray nodded.

"I'm…I'm Josh." Josh stammered, waving slightly.

"Would you mind if we talked about it in here?" Winston said, motioning to another room. Walking into it, Josh, Ray, Marcus, and Sitara all sat a table with Solider 76, Tracer, Winston, Reinhardt, Symmetra and Hanzo also sitting at the table. Marcus lifted up his glasses and blinked before lowering them.

"So, you guys are Overwatch?" He finally asked.

"Yes." Solider 76 nodded. "The entire team isn't here, but we'll do." There were introductions again then there was an awkward silence until he added. "You're the group who knew Mad Dawg when he was little?"

Dedsec looked to one another, pointing to one another as if trying to figure out who was going to start.

"Yeah. That's us." Marcus said, somewhat proudly. "Geez… where should we start?"

"How about the start love?" Lena suggested. "Tell them what you told us."

Marcus and Sitara looked to one another then back to the others as if wordlessly agreeing on something.

"So… years ago, me and our other teammate were hanging out, having a good time, but as we're heading back to our hangout, we find this little kid beaten and broken lying on the ground, scars and wounds all over him. We weren't sure what to do, so we picked him up and brought him back to the base, as we tried to patch him up, and he started healing unnaturally fast."

"And you didn't take him to a hospital because…?" Reinhardt asked, genuinely puzzled as to why they ignored the most obvious course of action.

Marcus didn't answer, just coughing slightly as if trying to avoid the question. His eyes darted to Ray then to Sitara, as if looking for an answer.

"How the hell do you think hospital staff would react to two men showing up with a bloody kid in tow who doesn't even know his real name?" Ray asked, almost sarcastically at how obvious that was. Reinhardt thought it over and nodded, seeing his side.

"He didn't even know his own _name_?" Winston asked, raising a brow in surprise at that fact.

"He said he didn't have a name. For a time, we just called him 'kid'." Josh answered. "After a while he called Marcus 'Dawg' once or twice, and Marcus called him that back, and it stuck."

"So that's how he got his name." Winston mused.

"Partially, he got the 'Mad' part from when he and Marcus… uh… never mind…" Josh trailed off when he saw that Marcus was giving him 'the look' and Ray was trying not to laugh at the memory. "So, we have no idea what to do with him, and he ends up crashing on the couch for a bit and then…"

"That part isn't important." Sitara said, waving the story away. "But yeah, for a while Mad Dawg was part of our team, he worked hard and was great to have around. He was like a little brother to us."

"Or a son to her." Ray leaned over and whispered loudly to Reinhardt, Making Sitara glare with death in her eyes at Ray.

"So, what happened?" Symmetra asked. "If you were so close, what split you apart?"

"We ain't talking about that." Marcus replied with a shake of his head. "Something are better left… alone."

"If you're not going to give us all the information you can, that makes it hard to help you then." Solider 76 replied in his gruff tone.

"Well, you've told us nothing about how you know him." Josh suddenly spoke up, making a valid point. Symmetra gave him a quick look and seemed to notice something about him she recognized.

"That's true." Tracer nodded before deciding to explain their side of the story. "He's not here to explain everything, but Lúcio and Reinhardt found him."

"So, on top of being an Overwatch agent, he's friends with Lúcio?!" Marcus exclaimed exasperated. "Man, he's been doin all kinda awesome stuff! Why doesn't he ever tell us?"

"Because he hasn't spoken to us in almost seven years." Josh commented. "We all assumed he was dead until a few days ago. How could we have spoken with him without knowing he was alive?"

Symmetra have a soft smile towards Josh with thankfully went unnoticed as she realized something.

"Well, what made him leave Overwatch?" Ray asked. "From what Hana told us, things were pretty good with him around."

"It was indeed." Reinhardt stated somberly. "He was a force not to underestimate, we may not have understood his… style, so to say, but he was someone who always believed in helping others. The missions he accompanied us on were always exciting, he was always there when duty called."

The members of Dedsec listened in wonder at the information, not only was their friend and teammate alive, but he was fighting alongside Overwatch. While a lot of things may have changed amongst them, it was good to know Mad Dawg –mostly- hadn't.

"I mean, sure. He was a little insane, and sometimes talked or even shouted at someone who wasn't there, but at the same time, everyone's a little off."

"You need to tell us why he left your team before we tell you what happened with us." Solider 76 stated cutting through to the point of this meeting. "All you need to know right now is that Mad Dawg is _no longer_ a part of our team, and currently he's evading legal repercussions for recent actions."

There was silence around the table, Hanzo, Winston and Tracer all having a face which clearly read _that was the worst possible thing you could've said._ Finally, Ray sighed and stood up, cracking his back.

"Welp. I've seen what I need to. Marcus? Hope you guys have luck finding him." Ray said looking to one side of the table, before turning to the others. "As for you guys?"

Ray then extended both middle fingers towards the agents as he left.

"You can all fuck right off."

"Where the hell do you think you're going?!" Solider 76 demanded, rising from his seat while the others were shocked at his response.

"Home." Ray simply stated. "Legally you can't do anything to stop me, I came here of my own free will and I'm leaving on my own free will. I know Mad Dawg, and I know he wouldn't do something without the best intentions, and you're treating him like a terrorist. Well, I ain't helping you if you're gonna treat him like that."

"Because as far as we can tell. He is." Solider 76 argued. "He's been seen numerous times with agents of Talon and-"

"I'm out." Marcus shook his head as he stood up, cutting 76 off. "Ray's right. You're a buncha' assholes if you're gonna turn on him that quick."

"Same goes for me." Sitara coldly said as she pushed her chair back. "You gonna treat him like that, we ain't telling you anything. Josh, you coming?"

At this point, the agents felt like they should do something. However, Hanzo remained still. Understanding their anger, Tracer racked her mind for something else to add, as she didn't want their best lead on Mad Dawg and some missing information about him to leave. Winston just sighed and rubbed his eyes, annoyed that Morrison took the 'interrogational' route while Symmetra still cast a glance over to Josh who surprisingly, didn't get up. He looked to the others, then back to the agents of Overwatch. His face was impossible to read.

"I think we're not getting the whole story." He finally spoke. "If you guys wanna go… You know where Wrench is. Meet up with him and try and find Kace, but I'm staying behind for a bit. I think before I can say who's right and wrong, we need to know more about the circumstances."

The agents were surprised at his reaction but silently thankful all the same.

"You do you kid." Ray said as he left the room. Sitara looked shocked at Josh for a moment before shaking her head and leaving as well. Marcus crossed his arms and seemed surprised more than anything.

"You sure about this man?" He asked.

"Marcus, I care about Kace as much as all of you. Well, except maybe Wrench…" Josh stated and Marcus nodded in agreement. "If he's out there, shouldn't what he meant to us back then outweigh what he means to us now? For all we know. They could be talking about someone completely different than the Kace we remember. And if it is the same one, we should just tell them the truth."

"Kace?" Hanzo asked, raising a brow.

"Yeah… Uh, Josh here never understood what we called him 'Dawg'. So 'Kace' was our 'Civilian Name' for him." Marcus explained as he walked back towards the table. He paused, as if thinking something over than sat down again. "Look, I'm sorry about like five minutes ago, Mad Dawg or Kace, or whatever you wanna call him, was like family to me and the others. The kid was all kindsa messed up when we found him, the little dude was suffering from PTSD and insomnia like you wouldn't believe." As he explained, the Agent's faces changed from confusion and slight anger to sadness. Even Solider 76's visor dropped somewhat at the revelation. "So, we take him in, and he's like a lost puppy. He's following us around, not sure of anything, no clue what to do and he's doing his best to try and be one of the group. Didn't even know where to get food without someone explaining it to him. Hell, Wrench and I hung bacon from fishing line as a joke and he went berserk when he saw it, damn near dislocated my shoulder when he took off with the food. So, at this point, we're not sure what to do, we don't know who this kid is, or who hurt him. Then the nightmares start happening."

"After a while, we started drugging him to try and get him to sleep." Josh added. "He went for nearly a week without sleep, and when he finally goes under, he wakes up screaming in terror. Something about… what was it again?"

"He ended up calling it 'The Night Surgeon'." Marcus stated. "We don't know what could've caused it, but he was too scared to sleep. Kept screaming about being ripped apart and stitched back together with his intestines, only to be torn back open and stabbed through the eyes with his ribs… you get the idea, _Clive Baker_ level body horror shit" Winston seemed queasy somewhat at the thought and Tracer bit her lip, somewhat disgusted herself. "Kid started violently puking out of fear. Began shot gunning coffee and Hydra energy's to try and stay awake. A week or two later, he's a wreck. His eyes are bloodshot and his body destroying itself from the inside out. So eventually, Sitara starts staying up with him, the little guy's scared to be alone so she thought it would help if there's someone with him. After a while, the nightmares stop, everything's pretty damn good. He finally starts sleeping calmly."

"It seemed natural that Sitara would've developed a bond with him during that time." Josh stated. "The mind connects with someone through difficult events, forming a connection which isn't easily shattered. He started to see her like a big sister or a maternal figure of sorts, and in time he formed a bond with the rest of us."

"And from there things got better…" Marcus stated before sighing deeply. "He seemed happy, tried to learn and be one of the team, and after a while, he got pretty damn good. Then it all came crashing down."

"What happened?" Symmetra asked.

"I dunno man." Marcus shook his head. "Everything was fine, then one day he comes running into the base, crying and screaming about how it's all his fault. How 'she's dead and it's all my fault!' and Wrench, well, he was _**PISSED**_."

"Did you ask what happened?" Tracer asked quietly, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"We tried." Josh replied. "But then Wrench loses it, starts yelling at him, calling him a monster, a freak of nature who shouldn't exist." Josh shuddered at the memory of what came next. "Then he shot him in the head."

The agent's gasped slightly at the story, some more than others. Shock and anger flowing through them. Winston breathed heavily out form his nostrils while Reinhardt clenched his fist.

"Wrench knew it wouldn't kill him, but he didn't care. He wanted to hurt him. Ray seemed mad with him as well, and I think he never fully forgave him for what happened, but Wrench threw him out a window. He landed in a truck and disappeared."

"We should've gone after him…" Marcus muttered regretfully, silent tears forming in his eyes. "We were so shocked at what happened, we didn't know what to do."

"The next time we saw him, he pushed Sitara and I out from a burning building about a week later." Josh continued. "He tried to escape, but the whole place came down on him."

"And that's the last you saw of him." Hanzo concluded.

"Damn right." Marcus nodded. "We buried the remains we could find, and that was that."

"I'm… I'm sorry." Tracer said, wiping tears from her eyes. (FEEL EMOTIONS DAMN IT! FEEL SAD!) "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but do you know why Mad Da-er, Kace didn't contact you?"

"I think he was to scared about whatever had happened, that he thought we hated him." Josh shrugged. "We heard rumors of someone like him in a nearby town, and we searched long and hard, hoping he was alive. But after a while, we figured he really was dead."

"I'm sorry for what you've gone through." Winston finally spoke up. "And if it's any consolation, he says one of his biggest regrets is not contacting you. In fact, he says he believes it's been too long, and at this point he thinks you've forgotten about him and moved on."

"Huh." Was all Josh said in response, but it was clear he was saddened by that. Marcus took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes.

"He thought… we moved on?" He finally muttered. "How could he?! After all we went through, he thinks we'd just FORGET him?! Why the hell is he thinking that about us?!"

"I don't think it's entirely like that." Symmetra spoke up, making the two hackers look to her. "This might seem like an odd question, but how old was he when this happened?"

Marcus thought it over before replying: "Nine or ten. Rough guess."

"Well, think about it like this then. He clearly made a large mistake, one he feels great remorse for. The other member of your team… Wrench, was it? Was verbally attacking him. In his current state of mind, he was like a child being scolded by his parents, but whatever he did made him believe he destroyed the bond between him and Wrench, and that idea was solidified when he _shot_ him." Symmetra explained emphasizing her disgust at the action taken. "He believed that his actions were unforgivable, and that there was no place for him among you anymore, so when he saw a chance to leave, he took it."

"That makes sense." Josh nodded. "He was confused and uncertain of what to do, so he took the first opportunity he saw to get away from it all, to try and start a new life."

"Alright, so now you know what happened with us, what happened with you?" Marcus asked.

"About four months ago, Mad Dawg seemed… Troubled." Reinhardt began, ignoring any if the looks he may have been getting. "He seemed to become erratic and unpredictable. Granted he was always a little off, but at least with that you could tell what he was feeling or thinking. Then one day he lost it." He paused to make sure they were still listening before continuing. "He attacked one of our teammates, Angela Ziegler, started screaming about something she knew nothing about and how she did something to him. And our ingenious leader attacked him in a way similar to how your teammate did."

"Man, we suck." Marcus shook his head. "This kid needed our help, and we just turned on him."

"Well, I think he would also agree that given the situations we were in years ago that the reactions may have been somewhat warranted." Josh added. "But Wrench went too far."

"This Wrench fellow sounds like a Junker." Tracer commented, still uncertain of how to feel overall.

Marcus and Josh glanced to one another, not responding.

Meanwhile, Ray was leaving the bathroom, still kinda pissed off at how the meeting went until he saw Sitara talking to someone. Walking over, he was met with a guy wearing a cowboy hat glancing over to see him.

"This him?" The man asked, pointing over her shoulder to Ray.

"Yeah. Ray? This is McCree. He's been filling me in on what happened." Sitara said. "Turns out Dawg was in a lot more crap than we realized."

"You're Ray? Hm, about what I expected."

"The hell do you mean by that?" Ray asked, raising a brow.

"MD said you were like, and I quote, 'the cool old grandpa' guy."

"The hell do you want?" Ray grumbled.

"Mad Dawg was my friend, and I was there for a good chunk of the storm that was his life a few months ago." McCree answered. "They don't have the slightest clue what really happened. Jack was just looking for someone to blame when it came down to it."

"Yeah he's a real asshole." Ray muttered. "I've only known him for about five minutes and already I hate him."

"Look, I was grabbed by some idiots who were trying to get at Mad Dawg, there was this guy named Virus, he's a edm-dj who wanted Mad Dawg for some reason, claimed he did something to him."

"Holy crap…" Ray muttered, a series of memories returning to him.

"Look, as much as I want to know if he's okay, I also want to leave him be. If he's alive, he made it clear he wants to be left alone. Maybe we should leave him alone."

"No way in hell." Ray shook his head. "What do you know that they don't?"

"The kid was trapped in a weird maze-like room the last time I saw him." McCree began, keeping his voice low. "Virus really had it in for him, sent in Junkers, Mercenaries and Talon agents to try and kill him. We fought back and survived the onslaught, but after that, Mad Dawg was cut off from us. And that was the last time I saw him." McCree frowned, casting a glance downwards. "When I got back here… I refused to talk about what happened. I didn't know the whole story, but it was clear that it was personal an'I wasn't about to stab him in the back. But my silence cost me." He lifted up his leg and scratched above where a bracelet was attached to his leg, a blue light flashing.

"Hm." Ray mused, thinking it over, then looking to McCree. "If we get that off you, would you help us look for him?"

"If you try and take it off, Overwatch'll be on our asses like vultures on a cattle corpse." McCree frowned.

Ray held up his phone and grinned.

"Not exactly." He smirked. While McCree raised his brows in confusion yet amusement.

"So where are we going next?" Marcus asked as he walked out form the meeting room. "And by the way, Josh is staying behind. That Vaswani woman and him seemed to hit it off. He said something about trying 'Light construction' or something along those lines. Also, who's he?"

"The name's McCree." McCree nodded. "And that is a good question. Where are we going from here?"

Sitara sighed and looked at the small group. She didn't like how the meeting went (and didn't like the idea of leaving Josh alone here) but also knew they had to figure out if Mad Dawg was alive.

"We're going to Junkertown."

"We're going to Junkertown?" Marcus asked, perplexed.

 _Later…_

"We're going to Junkertown!" Marcus exclaimed excitedly as their helicopter approached the outskirts of the infamous town, having been filled in on what the plan was.

McCree pulled a bandana up over his face as they approached the gates. Junkrat and Roadhog had declined to join the trip as the town was supposedly reeling from the death of the queen and adjusting to the new leader. Who it was, was anyone's guess. But either way, it was Junkertown, and that was bad news. A few years back, Wrench wanted a change, so he decided to set out on an excursion to Junkertown. They received a message saying he liked it there and was going to stay awhile. But they hadn't seen him since. As they paused at the gates, two Junkers looked down, then to one another and then yelled something inaudible before running off.

"Ya think we scared them?" Ray sarcastically asked.

"They might've seen you're face, so it's a possibility." Sitara shrugged, pulling her hoodie down. She and the others got new clothes to try and seem more… relatable. So, to say. Marcus was wearing a torn jacket with baggy track pants, Ray wore his wielders outfit and goggles and Sitara cut up a hoodie to fit her style and seem like she belonged. Ray pulled his wrench out from his backpack, ready for a potential fight as the gates opened and several large and heavily-armed Junkers walked out to meet them. They all wore scrap metal-armor and held large guns.

"Who th'ell are you?" One finally asked.

"We're travelers." Ray spoke up. "Looking for a new place to live, heard this was a place to try."

Seeing the torch on his belt, the guard asked. "You a wielder?"

"One of the best." Ray smirked, pride in his voice, while Sitara rolled her eyes.

"And you prigs?" Another guard asked, pointing with his gun to the others.

"I'm a programmer." Marcus answered. "I'm good with a mech."

"I make clothes out of anything I can find." Sitara stated.

"I'm a hunter." Was all McCree said, trying to act inconspicuous.

One of the guards reached forward and lifted Marcus' glasses up, then leaned over to another guard and whispered something.

"Alright. Get in, we'll discuss what happens next inside." The guard nodded, pointing to the door.

After entering the confines of Junkertown, the hackers could hear shouting and machines being built and destroyed all around them. While McCree, Marcus and Sitara seemed uneasy, Ray almost seemed fascinated.

"Why haven't I been here before?" He muttered as they walked.

"Focus Ray, we need to find Wrench." Sitara leaned over and instructed. "He could be anywhere."

One of the guards answered his walkie-talkie and seemed shocked by something, before simply saying "Yessir." And turning to the others. "The king wants to see you."

"The king?" Marcus asked, surprised.

"Yeah. An' no-one says no to 'im!" Another guard said, approaching the group. "So, let's get movin'. NOW." Raising his weapon.

"Whoa there, take it easy man." McCree said, tentatively reaching for his gun.

"Okay, cool, let's go meet the king." Marcus said, trying to calm everyone down. And it worked. McCree moved his hand away and nodded. The group made their way onto what looked like a car made out of scrap metal, the hackers (and McCree) got in and sat silently as they drove towards the large castle-like building. Once they arrived, they followed the guards into the building, all of whom were looking at them quizzically and with interest. Finally, they reached the throne room and waited in the centre of the room. With the sound of large doors opening, the guards snapped to attention as the 'king' entered the room. They didn't know how to react, should they bow? Should they ask if he knew where Wrench was? Then one of the guards shouted:

"ALL HAIL **KING WRENCH**!"

 _At the same time in Numbani…_

"Everything. Sucks." Mad dawg grumbled, lying on the counter.

"What's up Toby?" Zyon asked, never having seen Toby so depressed.

"Like I said. Everything sucks." Mad dawg muttered, still not answering the question.

"You uh… You wanna talk about it?" Zyon asked, not sure how to react.

"No." Mad Dawg said in his dead tone.

"Hey T. You thought about maybe taking a vacation?" Zyon mused, thinking it over. "Maybe a change of scenery for a week or so could help."

"Yeah… Maybe a vacation could help." Mad Dawg nodded, agreeing with his friends.

"Listen, I gotta go to work, afterwards I'll bring some of my friends over so you can meet em', I think you'll feel better then."

Mad Dawg smiled slightly and pulled himself up, smiling slightly.

"Cool." He smiled.

Once Zyon was gone, Mad Dawg decided to pack his bag, in case he decided to go on vacation.

 _Back in Junkertown…_

"What." Marcus said, eyes widening and jaws dropping.

"You've gotta me shitting me." Ray muttered as they turned around in shock. Standing in front of them, was Wrench. He was still wearing his mask, but had a long cape and a crown made of scrap metal on his head. He wore his spiked Dedsec jacket but no shirt underneath, revealing new tattoos and scars.

"Marcus? Ray? Sitara?" Wrench asked, his mask changing to a shocked expression when he saw his friends. "And some random dude? It really IS YOU!"

"Holy crap man! You're the KING?!" Marcus exclaimed, shocked and amazed.

"Damn right man!" Wrench said proudly, striking a pose.

"How did that happen?" Sitara said, just as amazed as Marcus.

"Well, when I wound up here I kinda… sorta…" Wrench began awkwardly.

 _FLASHBACK… (Wow this is a long chapter…)_

As the gates closed behind him, Wrench looked around in amazement as he carried his bag of tools through the streets of the town, his trusty sledgehammer 'Squishy' was secured on his back. Some people noticed him and raised eyebrows at his mask, some thinking it was cool, and some thinking it was odd.

"Oi mate!" One called. "How much fer the mask?"

"The mask is not for sale my good man." Wrench said, in a jokingly deep tone, his mask emoting - - and the Junker gave a good-natured laugh.

Continuing his trek, Wrench looked around and paused when he saw a line of heavily armed mechs walking towards an arena.

"I am SO doing whatever that is…" He muttered to no one in particular.

It didn't take Wrench long to find himself in a bar, drinking a beer under his mask. Oddly calm for both being Wrench and being in Junkertown. He ignored the profanities being yelled behind him and only turned when someone was thrown into the bar. He looked down at the man, then over his shoulder at the large Junker who threw him.

"He's alive." Wrench stated.

"Not fer long." The man scowled.

"Bar fight! Hell yeah!" Wrench yelled, swinging his sledgehammer into the man who was approaching him. Sending him flying into the wall. Another Junker grabbed a 40 and smashed it over Wrench's head, only to have the sledgehammer come around and send him into the mirror above the bar, with a "Up yours!" shouted for good measure. At this point, several Junkers joined the brawl and all ganged up on Wrench. However, Wrench began spinning in a circle with the sledgehammer, knocking Junkers away and breaking bones. Finally stopping, Wrench breathed heavily before shouting in pain as a surge of electricity hit his back. His mask short circuited and Wrench fell forward, blacking out.

"Junker Code #44, you can't interrupt a bar fight mate." The guard stated as he and several others dragged Wrench away.

Several hours later, Wrench's mask came online as he groaned and pulled himself up in a cell.

"Yer finally awake? Good." A female voice spoke up. Looking around, Wrench saw the Junker Queen standing on the other side of the cell door. "Was hopin' you were made of stronger stuff."

"Who the hell are you?" Wrench asked, still dizzy from the shock.

"I should be askin' you th'same thing." The Queen retorted. "Never see ya before, and never seen anythin' like yer mask. But if you gotta know, I'm the Queen of this town."

"Well, I'm an anarchist. So…" Wrench then flipped the queen off before leaning against the wall.

"Oi, another one." The Queen shook her head, walking away.

Several weeks passed and Wrench found himself dangerously bored. There was nothing to do, nothing to build and explosive with, so he began talking with the guards at his cell, and surprisingly, they got along well.

"So… What would you guys do if you were in charge?" Wrench asked one day. "If you were in charge, what'd you do differently?"

"Meka Battle day." One guard answered. "Mandatory meka fight day, get the 'ole town involved."

"I'd make…" Wrench began, thinking about it. "Liquor day."

"Liquor day?" Another guard asked.

"Yeah, not a 'day' as much as three days." Wrench explained. "Mandatory party and binge drinking on the first two days then an extra day to get over the hangover. Maybe make it four days."

All the guards laughed and cheered at that idea.

"If you become the leader of Junkertown for some reason, you gotta do that!" One laughed.

All the guards snapped to attention as the Queen walked into the jail and walked directly to Wrench's cell.

"Open it." She instructed.

One of the guards saluted her and did as he was told, with a metallic creak, the cell door opened. Wrench's mask changed to two question marks.

"Let's see what you can do." She said.

 _Several Years Later… (Still in the Flashback…)_

Wrench was working on the Queen's personal war machine. After being released from jail, Wrench built up a reputation amongst the Junkers as a damn skilled mechanic and explosives maker, and that he was somehow more insane than all the Junkers in Junkertown (aside from the queen.) Eventually the queen 'hired' him to work on her vehicles ('hired' as in death threats) so while he was still doing what he loved, he hated the Queen. One day however, one of the runners, named Scrapp came running into the garage screaming.

"SHE'S DEAD! SHE'S DEAD!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Scrapp calm down!" Wrench shouted, shaking the small runner. "What happened?" His mask emoted two question marks, confused as to what was going on.

"The Queen!" Scrapp shouted. "She's dead!"

"WHAT!?" Wrench shouted in shock, his mask emoting two exclamation marks.

Wrench listened intently as Scrapp explained to the elite guards what had happened to the squad who went with the queen to find… someone, but apparently, the Queen wound up with several metal spikes in her head and was dead.

"Oi this ain'good." One of the elite guards (who Wrench knew from his prison guard days) shook his head, not knowing what to do now.

"Who was she after?" Wrench asked, confused.

"No one knows." Scrapp replied. "The people in her team knew… but they're dead."

"Huh." Wrench nodded. His mask emoting - - as he thought about it. "Dibs on her war machine!"

"What?! Why do you get it?!" A guard yelled. "If anyone should git it mates it should be me!"

"Junker Code #87, when someone calls 'Dibs' it is theirs." Wrench stated.

"Ay! We have a bigger issue here!" Scrapper shouted, getting the rooms attention. "Who's gonna take over now that she's gone?!"

The room went quiet, thinking it over. Everyone looked to one another, not sure what to say. Finally, one of the elite guards looked to another, then coughed, getting the other guards attentions.

"Remember Liquor day?" He finally asked to Wrench.

"What? That joke day I came up with? Yeah, I remember it. What's your point?" Wrench asked, not connecting the dots until his mask emoted exclamation marks. "You want me to-?!"

"If you'll accept it." One of the Elites nodded.

Wrench sighed, thinking it over, then nodded.

 _Presently…_

"And now I'm the king!" Wrench finished. "So, what are you guys doing here?"

The members of Dedsec looked to one another, only now realizing they had no plan on how to tell the guy who may still hate Mad Dawg that he was alive. But then Marcus finally spoke up, deciding to get it out of the way.

"Mad Dawg's alive."

 _Back In Numbani…_

"That was easier than usual." Zyon commented as the museum workers unloaded the artifacts Overwatch was hired to deliver, carrying the crates into the museum.

"Agreed. Last time we were here, Talon did everything they could to steal the gantlet." Zarya commented.

"Perhaps the winds of change have finally blown in our favor." Zenyatta added, still floating somehow, defying all logic and reason.

"What? You think Talon's on vacation or something?" Zyon smirked. "They're all inn Miami on a company retreat?"

"Whatever the reason is, the break is welcome." Zarya added after a moment.

"Yeah. What do you think Torb?"

"If they wish to hide and plan something, let them. We'll be here, ready and waiting." Torbjörn stated, looking over the manifesto of items they were delivering. "But I don't find it strange why we haven't run into them here again, they got what they wanted last time, so why would they return?"

"They hide and attack like cowards, never facing us with honor. Using fear to manipulate their enemies." Genji mused, leaning against the back of the payload.

"Speaking of getting what they want, there's a great coffee house like two minutes form here. I know the guy who owns it. You wanna get some?" Zyon asked, turning to face the others.

"Sure." Torbjörn shrugged. "I could go for a drink."

"I could as well."

"I would be fine with that."

"I am unable to drink coffee, but nonetheless I shall accompany you." Zenyatta stated the obvious.

After a few minutes of walking the heroes arrived outside of the coffee house. Zyon smiled as he opened the doors and called "Yo Toby! We're back!"

Mad Dawg set down his Dungeon Master Guide and smiled at Zyon.

"Hey Zy! What's happ-"

He stopped mid-sentence in shock at the sight of Torbjörn, Zarya, Genji and Zenyatta walk through the front door. "Holy balls."

"Mad Dawg?" Zarya said in shock, saying what the entire team was about to.

"You're alive?" Genji said, eyes visibly wide despite the face mask.

"Mad Dawg?" Zyon said confused. "His name's Toby. And how do you know him?"

"He's our friend! We've been looking for him for months!"

"What?" Zyon said, looking to Mad Dawg.

"SMOKEBOMB!" Mad Dawg yelled, throwing something onto the ground. A bright white flash appeared and everyone was momentarily stunned, a loud ringing in their ears.

"Damn it! That was a flashbang!" Mad Dawg shouted as he stumbled to the back exit. Grabbing th bag he packed he stumbled through the door and took off running down the street. He could hear someone yelling and glanced over his shoulder to see Genji was following him. Turning and running down an alley, Mad Dawg jumped onto a wall, then pushed himself off of it, repeating this he made his way to a rooftop and jumped to the next one. He saw Genji and Zyon appear a few roofs back and continue the chase.

"Mad Dawg! You were alive all this time?!" He could hear Genji shout, confusion and anger in his voice. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Continuing across the rooftops, Mad Dawg jumped and used a nearby cable as a zip line to cut across the town. He smashed through a window and rolled through the room. Getting up he ran out of the room and down the hall. He paused to catch his breath, genuinely terrified.

 _How'd they find me?!_ He thought, his breathing still erratic. _Was Zyon a member of Overwatch this while time?! Well, I haven't paid much attention to what their roster was in recent time, so…_

"Mad Dawg, why are you running?"

Turning around, Mad Dawg was surprised to see Zenyatta floating near him. While he didn't have eyes, it was clear if he did they would be sympathetic.

"Please, if there is anything we can do to help you-" The monk began.

"Stay outta my life damn it!" Mad Dawg shouted. "All I'm gonna do is hurt you! You're better off without me!"

Before Zenyatta could respond, Mad dawg ran and jumped down the centre of the winding stair case. He fell several floors before landing and running through another door, looking over his shoulder, he didn't see Zarya standing right in front of him, who grabbed him as he ran by. She struggled to restrain him, but she was stronger than he was.

"Why did you hide from us?!" She demanded. "What the hell has been happening to you?!"

Mad Dawg jumped and managed to slip out of the headlock he was in, only to be kicked into a wall by Zarya. He wasn't getting away that easily. Mad Dawg yelled and swung, only for Zarya to grab his head and smash it into her knee, making him stumble back.

"You were our comrade! We trusted you!"

"AND LOOK WHAT THAT GOT YOU!" Mad Dawg snapped, tears of anger rolling down his face. "Ever since Overwatch made the mistake of saving my worthless ass, all I've brought is death and pain to everyone I care for! My entire existence is an allurement for people to get hurt by being near me! No matter where I go, someone's gonna get hurt. So, what's the point of fighting terrorists, if the biggest threat was sitting right next to you?"

"Is that what you assume we think of you?" Zarya questioned. Almost speechless by Mad Dawg's self-defecating view.

"No. But if you were smart, you would." Mad Dawg growled, bloodied from his window-smashing escapade and because of the scuffle with the bodybuilder.

"Please, come with us. We can help." Zarya said calmly, extending her hand to him. Mad Dawg looked down, then seemed to reach out to take it…

"I'm sorry Z." He whimpered.

Lunging forward, Mad Dawg jabbed Zarya with a homemade taser, unleashing a large amount of electricity into her, making her yell in pain and anger, as she fell to her knees, watching Mad Dawg jump off of a balcony.

"Don't let him get away!" She ordered into her comm.

Mad Dawg was running as fast as he could, he felt that weird animalistic side clawing to get free and had to struggle to keep it contained. However, he still wasn't looking where he was going, and ran into a telephone poll. Falling on his back, he shook his head as he got up, pulling a paper off of his face and pausing to read it.

Hey you!

Yes! You!

No, not THAT GUY.

YOU!

Are you tired?

Do you need a vacation?

If you said YES (or no) come to beautiful FORREST VALLEY!

At FORREST VALLEY we have everything you could hope for!

Fishing! Nature Trails! Clean Sheets! Buffets!

So, what are you waiting for? You're not going to live forever!

Call 1-800-TREEVALLEY Today!

 _Huh._ Mad Dawg thought. _Sounds good…_

Shoving the paper in his pocket, Mad Dawg ran and jumped onto a bus right as the doors were closing, paying the fare, he sat with his head down as the bus drove towards the city limits. He'd need to walk a bit, but then he could jump onto a train and get outta here. Meanwhile, the agents were still searching everywhere for him.

"You mean to tell me he was RIGHT HERE the whole damn time?!" Torbjörn shouted as they regrouped, having lost him.

"Don't blame this on me papa smurf!" Zyon snapped. "I had no idea he was an agent! He was just some guy who ran a coffee shop!"

"Enough!" Genji yelled, cutting them both off. "It doesn't matter what we did or didn't know. What matters is that we find him!"

"It's Mad Dawg we're talking about. It won't be that easy." Zarya sighed. Cracking her neck and back after the fight she just had.

"Then we start looking." Zyon said annoyed.

 _The Next Day…_

Finally feeling (somewhat) less paranoid on the train, Mad Dawg lay on his bunk in his compartment, thinking over what had happened the previous day. It was close. Too close. He had to be careful… But he also felt a great deal of guilt. He didn't like running from them, but what choice did he have?

 _Tell them the truth you idiot!_ A voice in his head shouted.

"Hey author? Shut up." Mad Dawg scowled, taking out his phone and punching in a number. The phone rang a few times, then a female voice answered.

"Hello! And welcome to Forrest Valley! How may I help you?"

"Uh, heya. I'd like to make a reservation." Mad Dawg said.

 **A.N. Boom. There we go. It's been too long since I updated and I'm sorry! But this came out to 21 pages. At several different points, I thought about ending it, but it wouldn't've worked as well as I hope this does. So now Wrench is king of Junkertown, Mad Dawg was almost found out, Josh is beginning to hang around Overwatch more, and Zyon's got a LOT to catch up on. If you enjoyed (and I hope you did.) review and follow! I don't know when the next chapter will be uploaded. I gotta wore some more on Zyon's Legacy. See ya next time!**


	30. Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Mad Dawg took a deep breath and genuinely smiled. He stood under a large sign which read 'Welcome to Forrest Valley!' carved into what seemed like pine with two large pillars with carvings of bears, fish, boats and other such things. Carrying his bag with him (and his backpack) he walked to the connection centre and set his hockey bag (full of clothes and supplies he managed to get from a safe house) down on the ground as he walked in. He approached the desk and a woman looked up and smiled at him.

"Hello there." She said. "Do you have a reservation?"

"Um… Yeah. Tobias Kane." Mad Dawg nodded, still using the fake alias but knowing after he was done here, he needed to change it. Again.

The woman typed something into the computer before nodding.

"Ah, Mr. Kane, you're in cabin number seventy-five." She said, handing him a key amongst some other things. "Do you need assistance with your bags at all?"

"Meh, I got it." Mad Dawg shrugged. "But thanks for asking."

Walking back out into the calm afternoon light, Mad Dawg picked up his bag and began the trek to his cabin. As he went along his way, he could see families swimming in the nearby lake, there were some Omnics and people sitting on a dock fishing, several older residents were playing shuffleboard. No one seemed to be plotting something evil, everyone just seemed… happy. It was calming for him, here, there was no need for the Crimson Phoenix, no need for Overwatch, he could just be… himself.

 _Man. Maybe I finally found a place where I can't ruin everyone's life!_ Mad Dawg thought, a glimmer of hope manifesting in his mind.

 **Hold my beer.**

 _You do that, and you'll be holding your own intestines._

 **Okay. Point taken.**

Continuing his trek to his cabin, Mad Dawg sighed and smiled as he stood outside of his cabin. He had no idea how long he was gonna stay here, but for now, the wood and brick cabin seemed like a godsend. Walking into his cabin he looked around the small foyer. He walked into what would now be his room and set his hockey bag down, groaning as he rubbed his shoulder. Tossing his backpack onto a chair in the corner, Mad Dawg decided to go outside and enjoy himself as best as he could. But first, he needed a shower.

 _Eight Minutes Later…_

 **What? You thought I was gonna write a shower scene with Mad Dawg of all characters? That's… Weird.**

Mad Dawg walked outside, the only sounds he could hear were birds and the sounds of his flip flops as he walked down the sidewalk. He looked around, noticing his cabin was attached to another one, but he hadn't seen who was staying inside it.

 _Ah well. I'll meet em' later…_ Mad Dawg thought to himself. Making his way back to what seemed to be the centre of the resort, MD contemplated what he was gonna do for now. Sitting on a bench he watched as a young boy and girl rode by on bikes, Mad Dawg smiling as they laughed. Finally, he decided he was going to go chill at the dock. As he walked, a weight seemed to be lifted off of his shoulders either he was finally able to move forward with whatever his 'life' was, or he was finally able to push his feelings so deep down that they were hidden. And as you all know, you should NEVER express your feelings or talk to people about them, no matter how bad it might be, expressions of an emotional kind are signs of weakness, and-

 _Hey, asshole._

What?

*Click*

OH, MY GOD NO!

 **BANG!**

 _Okay… I'll have to clean that mess up later… Yo! Original Narrator!_

My name's Krystal. Just so you know.

 _Oh really? Sorry, after all this time I never knew your real name. Krystal, sorry about that… I have no idea who that was or how he got in here. This random dude just hijacked the story!_

I know! We left for fifteen minutes to get pizza and THIS happened!

 _Let's get on with it. Speaking of which, where are we?_

After cleaning the remains of some random person who intruded the story and hijacked the narrators job, Mad Dawg casually walked to the docks, his flip flops making their oddly satisfying sound all the way until he stopped and kicked his feet over the dock, letting them rest in the cool blue water.

"Yo." A new voice came.

A newcomer sat down next to Mad Dawg. He was a lanky tanned man with long, Rastafarian-like dreadlocks that seemed dirty and had a few leaves in them. His arms and legs were somewhat hairy (more than Mad Dawg's) and he seemed a few years older than him. At least six or seven years. He wore a weird necklace with a noticeable peace symbol, or maybe it was the Omnic Peace symbol. He couldn't really tell from a glance.

"Hey." Mad Dawg replied.

"My name's Twig." Twig introduced himself. "I haven't seen you before."

"I'm Toby." Mad Dawg introduced himself with his alias. "I just got here like, an hour ago."

"Ah, that's like, why I haven't seen you yet." Twig nodded. "Anyhow, welcome to Forrest Valley man… my family founded this place like, a long time ago and we've been running it ever since."

"It's nice, peaceful." Mad Dawg commented, looking out over the lake, smiling at the view.

"Yeah man. Sometimes me and my pals come down here and just… chill." Twig continued, swaying back and forth somewhat aimlessly. "Everything good for you so far?"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. "Everything's great so far."

"Well, cool brother. You need anything, just lemme know."

"I will." Mad Dawg nodded.

As Twig left Mad Dawg pulled an old picture he had out from his pocket and looked at it before sighing. He took another glance at the picture of him and some of the agents having a great time. Mad Dawg was holding the pole with the camera attached, Tracer was on his back, McCree was shot gunning a beer, Lucio was flashing a peace sign, Pharah was watching the others with an amused look on her face. Lying back, Mad Dawg sighed in content and closed his eyes for what seemed like five minutes. When he opened his eyes again, he saw the sun had nearly set.

"Holy crap. How long was I out?" He muttered looking around. Feeling hungry, MD picked himself up and headed over to the building where food was served. Quietly slipping in through the door, he looked around for where the food was. Silently walking through the dining hall, he grabbed a plate and loaded it up with food. He sat on a windowsill overlooking the park, now coloured by the reddish-yellow sun. He felt calm, relaxed. Yet he heard a voice in the back of his head.

" _You'll always be a monster."_

In the months that had passed, Mad Dawg had been struggling with the aftermath of Virus' twisted circus… And not just the revelation of what he really was. What was really digging in his mind was something he had found while Kawalik was cleaning up, a journal with twisted drawings and floor layouts, plans for what he was going to do with the buildings. However, the pages before were full of entries, some about his time on tour, some about him thinking about life. But then, there was the one page he regretted reading.

 _I don't know what happened. I got home today… and they were dead. Mom and dad, gone. Crystal's in the hospital, apparently there was a massive power surge and something happened. I'm praying to whatever entity is out there, please. Don't let Crystal die. She's been through enough as it is, losing her parents in the Omnic Crisis, I want to keep her safe, and now I'm more uncertain of what to do now more than ever. According to the Doc, whatever's wrong with me is going to get a whole lot worse till we figure this out… And the medication ain't helping. This wans't an accident, this was an attack. I don't know who did it, but I'll find out. And I'll make them pay._

From there, whoever Virus was before slowly degraded into the psychopathic monster Mad Dawg had to face off against a few months ago. The rest of the journal was mainly the previously mentioned pictures, and occasional lyrics. Mad Dawg had burned the journal, feeling guilty then, and feeling guilty now. The more he thought about it, Virus' insanity made sense. Perhaps it was schizophrenia or something of that like, or maybe, he was a goddamnned psychopath. And like it or not, Mad Dawg pushed him towards that. For quite a while, Virus had no idea Mad Dawg even existed, he mentioned how there were reports of someone running from the power plant, and the media was divided on it. Some claimed it was an Omnic, and some claimed it was a person. Another entry talked about how he went to Helix Security asking for assistance in finding the perpetrator and potentially joining. However, the leader at the time (someone Mad Dawg _didn't_ recognize) rejected him on both accounts, claiming Virus was 'unstable' and also that the perpetrator was probably long gone. After finishing his food, Mad Dawg walked back to his cabin, cracking his jaw as he went, still thinking about Virus.

 _Was he right?_ Mad Dawg thought sadly. _I mean… I did kill those innocent people and Omnics, but… That wasn't my intention! Who would even HAVE that intention?! Well, Talon… but still._ Mad Dawg shook his head, deciding he needed to get his mind onto other things.

"Hello there!"

Looking up, Mad Dawg saw a woman with brunette hair standing on the porch next to his cabin, she was wearing track shorts and a tank top and gave him a friendly smile.

"Your family staying here?" She said, pointing to the cabin he was crashing in.

"Nah, it's just me." Mad Dawg smiled with a slight shrug. "Th'names Toby."

"I'm Brigitte." Brigitte smiled in response. "You're here by yourself?"

"Yeah, finished up at University and wanted to unwind, so I figured I'd come out here."

"Where'd you go?" Brigitte asked, leaning on the railing.

"Miami U, I studied mechanics." Mad Dawg lied.

"I studied engineering." Brigitte replied before frowning. "I'm trying to fix the AC in here, but so far I ain't been able to figure it out."

"Have you called maintenance?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Not yet, I'm pretty sure I can fix it myself."

"Ah, well. Good luck with that." Mad Dawg nodded. "I'm tired, hopefully I'll see you around."

Brigitte waved as Mad Dawg walked into his cabin and closed the door behind him. Cracking his neck and getting ready for bed, Mad Dawg couldn't help but smile, thinking that there was at least one person here he might become friends with.

 _Meanwhile, Overwatch HQ Meeting Room_

"Are you sure?" Winston asked shocked by the news.

"Yes." Zarya nodded. "Mad Dawg is alive."

"That…that…That can't be!" Winston replied, shaking his head in disbelief. "He's been in Numbani this entire time? And we didn't know?!"

"I sorta did." Zyon said awkwardly, making the agents present turn to him, looking for an answer. "I knew his as Toby, he ran a coffee house near my dad's garage, I went there pretty much every day. But in all honesty, I had no idea he was an agent."

"How exactly did you not know that?" Junkrat asked skeptically to Zyon's lack of knowledge.

"For one, he didn't say he was an agent, I didn't say I was an agent, and I didn't re-join until about two months ago. Also, the commander never put out a message looking for a missing or rouge agent."

"Morrison didn't put out a message to be looking for Mad Dawg? Why not?" Winston asked, turning and looking at Solider 76, who set a sandwich down and turned to the others.

"Hs said he wanted nothing to do with Overwatch, so I let him have that." He stated. "When he took off, I didn't send out a warning to look for a rouge agent, I put out a warning to be on the look-out for a potential terrorist."

"YOU _**WHAT?!**_ " Winston roared, briefly entering his primal rage as he towered over the agents in the room, making everyone jump back in fear.

"He wanted out, I let him out." Solider 76 responded coldly. "As far as I'm concerned, we're done with him. He wanted to be cut loose so he could go after Virus, now he's out of the system. As far as his current status, he still needs to be held accountable for the slaughter at the Junker controlled house, as well as the reports of him being seen with both Sombra and apparently, Doomfist."

"And your any different?" Roadhog said in his deep tone, but clearly angered. "You were a street vigilante beating the crap out of random people for no reason other than you thought they deserved it."

"I fought to protect the innocent, Mad Dawg was out for blood. If I'm not mistaken, there's a stark difference between those two things."

"And what the hell makes you think you know anything about the context behind his actions?" Roadhog retorted.

"Roadhog, what are you-" Tracer began until Junkrat pulled her back.

"Bad Idea mate." He said, genuinely scared. "I've only seen Roadhog this mad a few times, it never ends well. For ANYONE."

"I wasn't aware there was context in where killing a man was okay, care to explain that?" Solider 76 snapped.

"Sure, it was called the super solider program." Roadhog snorted. "That was your entire purpose. Kill Omnics because they were a 'threat'. The same kind of 'threat' you've branded Mad Dawg. Well, here's some news for you, he's not a terrorist, and he's not a machine. He's our friend."

"And if you were such good friends with him, and you're all so determined to keep him around, why'd you all just stop caring after about a month of his absence?" With that, Solider 76 got up and left the room, leaving the agents in the room shocked by what had just happened.

 **A.N. So, I've wanted to bring this up for a bit, if 76 seems… Uncharacteristly cruel in this story, it's worth mentioning that if you watch the animated cinematics, Solider 76 has been shown to be mor aggressive and even more violent than Reaper is. However, I feel like in this story, characters have been written in their most basic form. For some of the characters (McCree, Tracer, Junkrat) that's fine, as I can easily write great scenes with them, but with some of the others (Solider 76, Moria, and Reaper) writing their scenes I a way that's loyal to the source, as well as entertaining can be a little difficult. I feel like I did Doomfist justice thus far, but things are gonna get interesting in the following chapters.**

 **Also, Brigitte's in the story now.**

 **Also, also, thanks for 30 chapters!**


	31. Just Another Day

**Hammond is a hamster. This is the greatest thing ever. He WILL be in this story.**

When Mad Dawg woke up the next morning, he felt well-rested. In all honesty, he was looking forward to the day, he could go relax at the dock, maybe go fishing, or see what was going on around the campgrounds. He smiled slightly, thinking back to the time when Marcus and Wrench had forced Sitara to come with them and the others on a camping trip. She wasn't a huge fan, but she did her best to hide that fact for him, but it was clear she didn't much care for the dirt getting everywhere. Cracking his neck, he looked down and saw he was wearing his jean shorts and t-shirt, had he fallen asleep in them? Whatever, he might have for all he could remember, and he wasn't exactly someone who'd care if he did. As he walked into the small kitchen, he saw someone was working at the stove. This newcomer was wearing a black overcoat and had very dirty blonde hair with hints of orange and smelled of coffee and whiskey.

"Whoa, who the hell are you?" Mad Dawg said surprised, taken aback by someone in his cabin.

The figure turned around, eating a sandwich. Mad Dawg's eyes widened when he saw the new man was him! He looked the exact same, albeit about eight or nine years older, and having a biker-esque goatee and a different hair colour, but it was him.

"Ah, good. You're awake." The older-looking Mad Dawg said. "We need to talk."

"Hang on, who are you?" Mad Dawg said, shaking his head in confusion.

"You've forgotten me already?" The older man asked. "You don't remember when we met months ago? Up here?" He said, pointing to his own head.

"…You…you're me?" Mad Dawg stammered, remembering months ago when he was near death, having met his 'animalistic side' in his mind… that was WERID. "You're that other side of me?" It didn't seem right… he seemed older, different.

"Well, sorta." The older Mad Dawg nodded. "I'm you, if a few things in your life change."

"I'm sorry, what?" Mad Dawg laughed slightly, looking at the older man.

"Sit down kid, we need to talk." The older Mad Dawg said, sitting down at the table. "This will be confusing, so I'll do my best to explain it so you can understand."

"Torch? Where's this going?" Mad Dawg asked, looking up to something, only to receive no response.

"Sorry kid, we can't break the fourth wall in here, since technically you aren't really speaking right now." Looking down at a coffee he suddenly had, the older man took a sip before looking directly at him. "I understand this must be weird for you, so where do you want me to start?"

"How about we start with your name?" Mad Dawg stated. "I get the feeling using some adjective then 'Mad Dawg' might get annoying to some people."

The older man chuckled slightly before taking another drink.

"I'm Mad Dawg."

There was silence for a few moments while Mad Dawg had a flat look on his face.

"…yeah I probably should've seen that one coming." Mad Dawg muttered.

"Look, how about I explain who I am and what's happened to us." The older MD said, before coughing and beginning. "Look, I'm you if you join with Talon." Seeing the younger Mad Dawg's eyes widen he quickly tried to explain himself. "Yeah, I know, I know, I'm a Talon agent. But I didn't do it because of the anger you're currently feeling towards Overwatch, I did it because we can't go back. And as for how I'm here, in the future, we discovered an odd form of time travel, where we can go back in time, but can only appear in someone's dreams. Something about it being easier to infiltrate someone's subconscious when they're currently in a form of sedation allowing us to communicate easier. And as for how we met a few months ago and yet I seem different now, well. That's because things were… undecided, so to say back then."

"Well, if I'd betray them and join Talon, I'd say I couldn't go back either!" Mad Dawg retorted, angered. Disregarding the 'time travel' bit. The older version of him sighed and shook his head slightly.

"Remember the beat down Morrison gave you? That'll be nothing compared to what the other's will do." He said, suddenly getting very serious. "Kid, in a few years, maybe months at this point, those agents will turn on you, they couldn't possibly care LESS about you. Once they find out you're a mutant weapon, none of them want anything to do with you. Hana won't speak to you, Lena resents you, Lucio hates you, and McCree? Heh, he used us as target practice." Lifting up the shirt he had under his overcoat revealing a rather large scar. "Mercy did that. She denied having a hand in creating us, and believed we were a monster. Claimed she 'wanted to destroy all of Moria's monsters.'"

Mad Dawg looked down, tears beginning to form in his eyes. Was this true? Did they REALLY hate him? Could he go back? What should he do now?! This wasn't true. He shook his head to clear it, not believing a word of it. Mercy wouldn't turn on him like that, she always seemed to care about him more than anyone else, Lucio and McCree has been with him through the fire and the flames recently, and Lena would never turn on him like that!

Would they?

You, the reader, decide.

"Now, for why I joined Talon." He continued. "Honestly, I didn't want to join right away. But they grabbed me after Overwatch dumped me somewhere, and after a while, I agreed to join. Yeah, they did torture me a bit, but the torture Tuesday sessions had no influence on my willingness to join. I joined for a different reason."

"Which is?" Mad Dawg asked, still not believing what he was hearing.

"Well, after I joined, I started getting to know Moria more." He continued, noticing the shock on the younger Mad Dawg's face. "She didn't like me and I didn't like her. But after a while, we had this odd sort of respect for each other. She was mathematically intelligent, and I was strategically intelligent, Time passed, she seemed to… care more."

"You've gotta be sh***ng me…" Mad Dawg groaned realizing where he was going. "No. Stop. Nope!"

"We were made from her genetics, her DNA… It took a while for us to find any common ground, but we did. And eventually it only seemed natural that we'd come to call her-" The other Mad Dawg continued with his explanation.

"That's bull!" Came a new voice, cutting the older Mad Dawg off.

The two turned and saw a smaller Mad Dawg walk into the room. He had snow white hair, wore torn track shorts and a dirty tank top with Lució's frog logo on it. He seemed angered as he walked into the room, pulled a chair out and sat on it, on for him to have to look up to see them, then stood on the chair so he could see the two he was looking at. Mad Dawg just groaned in annoyance, knowing that whatever was happening around him was about to get a LOT more confusing.

"All of that, complete B.S."

"Okay, what the actual hell is happening right now?!" Mad Dawg demanded, more confused than anything. "Is the author drunk or something?!"

"He's not you if you join Talon, that would mean he's from the future, and I can tell you that he ain't." The younger looking Mad Dawg said in a higher voice. "He's the embodiment of your bad side, and I'm the embodiment of your good side. You can call us Good Boy and Bad Dawg. We look like this so you can clearly recognize who's who in this conversation."

"Did I come up with those names? I really hope I didn't." Mad Dawg asked, groaning slightly, resting his head in his hands. "I need a drink…"

Suddenly, a bottle of whiskey materialized out of thin air in front of him on the table. Mad Dawg looked at it with a raised brow, then shrugged and took a long drink form the bottle as the two watched silently.

"Okay… Hang on." Mad Dawg finally said, beginning to connect the dots. "This is a dream?"

"Not a dream, more of a psychological state wherein you can create physical manifestations of emotions and can warp reality to what you want it to be within the limitations of your subconscious." Good Boy shrugged. "It's not EXACTLY a dream, but it also sorta is."

"It's like in A Nightmare on Elm Street four, where the kids in the asylum create a shared dream where they can all hang out and talk, but can also become there 'dream selves'." Bad Dawg commented, leaning back in his chair.

"First of all, the asylum was in the third film." Good Boy replied, looking over at Bad Dawg. "Secondly, it's not a shared dream, because we don't EXIST. Much rather it's more of a dream wherein he's manifested two sides of his mind and has-"

Without a warning, Mad Dawg ran and smashed through the window, a jetpack appearing on his back as he flew into the sky as the window fixed itself. Mad Dawg shot into the morning sky, the wind blowing in his face as he flew up and away from whatever was happening in his cabin.

"How long do you give him?" Bad Dawg asked, taking another drink.

"Thirty seconds, tops." Good Boy commented.

About fifteen seconds later, a loud crash was heard.

"Told yo-"

Mad Dawg bolted up in his bed, breathing heavily, looking around the cabin as the sun's early rays peaked in from the cracks in the drapes. Groaning he rolled over and grabbed his bag, and still half-asleep grabbed a binder from the bag. Cracking his neck, he opened to the page he was last on, as he looked at the logs written by those who worked on him, two stood out to him.

Day 33

Subject: Beta-576

Codename: Amug Un Rama

 _The subject's body is growing according to schedule, and its body seems to be adapting to the spliced genetics we've added. However, we are still unsure if it will succeed, but you learn from your failures, not your successes. There's still the matter of the potential final adjustments, but I'l have to consider all possibilities for this experiment, and others to come, they've offered us financial support beyond what we could ever imagine. The breakthroughs we could make would change the world, but the request they've made is rather... strange._

 _-Dr. Moria O'Deorian_

 _Project Lead/Medical Geneticist_

 _So… I gotta say it. This kid's awesome! He's still not really 'alive' so to speak, but I still like him. Whatever M's done to him, it's made him bigger, faster and stronger, than someone his age and it's awesome! His bone structure is at least twice as tough when compared to a normal human, and his cells are regenerating at an excelled rate when exposed to the virus' in controlled amounts. We still gotta take slow and steady (don't tell her I wrote this, but O'Deorian's pushing the little dude to hard) and we don't want him to get infected and die… We've come too far! So far, he seems to be immune to viral rhinitis and influenza. If this succeeds, this kid will be a living cure! The way I see it, if when it's all said and done, we could be able to isolate several strands of his blood and genetic material, and then we'll be able to cure EVERYTHING! I hope when this kid finally matures and y'know, wakes up, the two of us can hang out. I mean, he is created from all our DNA… so I hope he my good looks and love of pizza… Still, hang tight little dude. You'll be awake soon._

 _-Jackson Baja_

 _Lead Surgeon/Cellular Biologist_

" _I'm sorry Jax."_ Mad Dawg thought. _"I'm sorry we couldn't get to know one another."_

Mad Dawg lifted up his mattress to hide the binder, he decided to go back to sleep for another few hours. He closed his eyes for a few moments then opened them again, seeing Good Boy playing a handheld system and Bad Dawg was snoring loudly next to him holding a bottle of scotch.

"Oh right. You two." Mad Dawg muttered annoyed. "Can the two of you leave me alone?"

"No." They both said in unison, neither one of them looking at him though.

"Okay, fine." Mad Dawg grumbled. What is it that the two of you want exactly? Do I have to make a choice and then you'll leave? What do I do?"

"Yes." Bad Dawg slurred as he got up.

"No." Good Boy replied.

"Well? Which one is it?!" Mad Dawg asked, looking at the two of them. "Also, Skorch, again, WHERE ARE YOU?!"

"Look, there's no 'answer' you have to make, but the two of us are here until… Actually, I have no idea." Good Boy stated.

"Well, you want us to leave, it's simple. Listen to me. Come join Talon, your life will be better, and we can help you get over your past!"

"Get over my past?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Oh… Crap." Bad Dawg winced as if realizing something. "You haven't had the… ooh… uh, never mind. You'll know soon enough."

"So, neither one of you can give me a straight answer here?" Mad Dawg frowned, also not liking the ominous comment from his quote, unquote 'evil side'.

"Yes."

"No."

"I'm out!" Mad Dawg said before punching himself in the face, moments before hitting himself, he shot up in his bed again. Getting off of his bed he went outside and climbed up onto the railing, sitting down he gave a sigh. What was happening to him?

"Hey."

Looking over, he was relieved to see Brigitte leaning on her railing. While he still wasn't going to tell her everything about him (Mad Dawg honestly doubted he'd ever do that) she was still a friendly face and someone to talk to. And after all he had been through recently, he needed that.

"Heya." Mad Dawg said with a slight wave.

"You alright?" Brigitte asked, seeming concerned. "When I got up this morning, I heard you in your room scream or something… everything alright?"

"Oh… right…" Mad Dawg groaned, rubbing his eyes. "When I woke up I think I slept on my back wrong… and it cracked pretty hard. I'll survive." He finished with a dismissive shrug.

"That's good to hear." Brigitte nodded. "You have any plans for today?"

"Not really, I don't know what this place has, so my plan was to wander around for a while, see what they got, then not do any of that and fall asleep somewhere."

"You're one of those people who prides themselves on being lazy, aren't you?"

"I'm too lazy to answer that." Mad Dawg replied, before suddenly beginning to tip and waving his arms franticly as he fell off of the railing and onto the ground. "Ow."

"Well, have fun with whatever you do." Brigitte smirked. "I'm going for breakfast, apparently it's a buffet."

"If there's food, I'm in." Mad Dawg stated, stumbling back up onto his feet. "…where is it?"

Brigitte laughed. "Follow me." She instructed as she headed towards the main building with Mad Dawg tagging along.

 _Meanwhile… At Overwatch HQ… Yesterday..._

Josh felt weird. He wasn't one for crowds, or new people, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't interested with his new surroundings. He had stayed for two days now, and while he hadn't heard how the expedition to Junkertown went, he did have an interesting time with Satya. Having worked with Dedsec for so many years, he knew the ins and outs of computer coding, graphical design and even more knowledge than most on demolition (that last one was not by choice, but more because he spent so much time with Wrench). But he had not the slightest idea about light construction. After… the event… he _had_ seen light buildings before, but had no idea how it was possible. However, when Satya offered to show him some basics, he was hesitant, but his curiosity won out in the end. It took him awhile to even understand how it was physically possible to create a solid structure out of light, but once he understood the basics, he wasn't terrible. As the two practiced making a chair, something continued to gnaw away at the back of his mind, finally, he decided to ask.

"Why'd you want to show me this?" He asked.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe we have something in common." She replied.

Josh paused, thinking about what she said before seemingly realizing what she was talking about.

"You mean how we're both on the spectrum?"

Symmetra nodded.

"In that sense, I guess we do." Josh replied, still looking at his work. Symmetra frowned, thinking she may have done something wrong. Josh glanced over his shoulder and saw her look. "Oh. I'm sorry… I just… I sometimes focus on my work, and I don't always say the right thing. Um… sorry."

Symmetra couldn't help but chuckle slightly at his awkward explanation.

"It's fine." She smiled.

"So… how do you deal with it?" Josh asked, setting the tablet down and turning to look at Satya. "The way people…people treat you."

"They say the way we're made is how we have to live. But I believe that the way we're made is the base for something much better. We can build and manipulate what others would call 'fate'. Simply because we are made different from others does not mean we are still not masters of our own design. If we allow our fears and shortcomings to build a world for us, it will not be paradise, it will be a prison." She replied as she created a small dodecahedron as it spun in her hands.

"I'll be honest, I never understood why people thought I was different." Josh replied, by now Satya had figured out that while he may not be speaking with much emotion, his words spoke volumes. "If they want to think that, let them. But…but…" He trailed off, thinking for what to say. "I don't really care. With the friends I had, it didn't make a difference."

"They do seem to care about one another." Satya nodded.

"Yeah, I haven't seen Sitara this distressed in ages. She thought Kace was gone. Marcus, Ray and I taught him most of what he knows."

"That must not have taken you very long." Satya smirked. Josh looked at her confused then seemed to get it.

"Oh…right. I guess. Ray for some reason decided it would be important to teach him how to turn a t-shirt canon into a whiskey canon. He also learned the danger of launching a glass bottle full of alcohol at someone that same night…" Josh shook his head. "If I'm being honest, I think Mad Dawg had a lot more issues than anyone we knew did, and that includes me. But I think he handled it through denial and for lack of a better term, I guess insanity."

"Different people seem to handle things in different ways." Symmetra commented with a slight shrug, not wanting to dive into the interesting ideology and mental processes that made up the ex-agent Mad Dawg right now. In fact, she'd prefer not to have that conversation ever. So she decided to continue with her instructions. "Now, once you've completed your solid base. You'll want to continue with the reinforcement of your base parts, you can do this by…"

 _Present Day..._

In another section of the base, Mei was silently eating her lunch contently. She had heard about a group of techies coming for some reason, and that was about all she knew. As if on cue, Satya and someone she hadn't seen before walked into the cafeteria and sat down, still discussing something. Mei looked over then decided to walk over and talk to them.

"Hi Satya!" She said in her friendly tone. "Who's your friend?"

"This is Josh." Satya introduced Josh. "He was part of the group Mad Dawg lived with when he was little."

Mei paused, her cheerful face changing to one of uncertainty. Mad Dawg HAD mentioned a group a few times, but she wasn't sure she wanted to meet anyone associated with him right now.

"Hey." Josh said, unbeknownst to Mei and Satya, he was reading Mei's face and had a pretty good assumption something had happened.

"Hi there." She replied in a cool tone. "You know Mad Dawg?"

"Yeah, I knew Kace." Josh nodded. "We met him when he was little. Like seven or eight."

"Where'd he come from?" Mei asked, genuinely curious about that. "We had a bet going on around here about where he came from. If you could answer that, I'd like to know."

"I don't know." Josh shook his head. "We found him in an alleyway after a gang attacked him."

Mei have a slight gasp at that. That's where he came from? The streets? Well, he sure acted like he was. Mei mentally shook her head.

 _Whatever_. She thought. _He's long gone now, and that's for the best. We don't need him, never did._

"Well, I gotta get back to work. It was nice meeting you!" She said as she walked out of the cafeteria. Satya seemed confused, even a little shocked.

"She's usually the nicest one here." She commented. "I've never seen her act like that. I'm sorry about that."

"It's not her fault." Josh replied. "Something happened. The way she reacted when we mentioned I was a friend of Mad Dawg, it said a lot. Something happened between the two of them."

"Yes... something did." Satya sighed. "A few months ago, before he disappeared, the agents had found him. When they returned, Mei was in tears over something. Mad Dawg was gone as well, that was the last time we saw him."

Josh didn't reply, he took another bite of his food, thinking it over.

"I don't know what to say." He finally replied. "Something like that happened to us as well, but I'd rather not go into that right now."

"I understand." Satya nodded.

The two went back to their food before returning to light construction. All the while, one thought was running through Josh's mind.

 _What did you do Kace?_

 _Back At Forrest Valley…_

"CANNONBALL!"

Mad Dawg fell down towards the platform. Hitting the inflated bag, a small girl laughed and shrieked as she was launched into the air, flying forward before landing in the lake. Slipping on the wet plastic, Mad Dawg laughed as he slipped into the water. Coming back up to the surface, he swam back to the ladder and began climbing back up to the platform as an Omnic climbed onto the end of the water catapult. Mad Dawg had been looking for something to do as he passed by the lake and saw people launching one another off of the water catapult and thought it looked like a lot of fun. After being launched a few times, Mad Dawg tried launching others, and was having a lot of fun with it, so he became the resident 'Launch Pad Force'. Running off of the tower, Mad Dawg sent the Omnic flying through the air, whooping until he landed in the water. This continued for about an hour and a half, until Mad Dawg decided it was time to move on. Waving to the beach goers, he swam back to the beach and grabbed his towel and dried himself off. Walking towards the rec centre, Mad Dawg jumped a fence and began cutting through the alleyway made by several buildings. As he looked around a corner to make sure he wasn't going to be caught, paused when he saw something off. Two men and an Omnic looked around skittishly before going behind a dumpster, all the while making sure no one was watching. Mad Dawg waited for a few moments, but no one returned.

" _Weird."_ He thought. _"Must be goin' to do some stuff where no one can see it… Wait. What the hell am I doing hanging around here?"_

Shaking his head, Mad Dawg ran and jumped over the last fence before heading towards the rec centre.

" _Whatever, they're probably not doing anything of real importance. And it's not like I need more problems in my life."_

The two men and the Omnic silently made their way down the stairs to a large room hidden deep underground. Two burly men stood guard outside of the room, but moved aside when they approached. As they entered the room, several robed figures turned and looked at them.

"Greetings brothers." One of the hooded figures spoke after a few moments of silence, his deep voice echoing throughout the hall.

"Greetings High Councillor." The three responded in unison.

"Did you meet with our potential allies?"

"Yes, my lord." One of the two men nodded. "They seem to not care for our practices, but are willing to assist us and provide us with the weapons we will need for the forthcoming storm."

"Good…" The High Councillor slowly nodded. "I do not wish to work with… terrorists, but if we are to fulfill the prophecy, we must be willing to do what is necessary. No matter the cost."

"Yes, my lord." The three replied in unison once again.

"Why do you always say the same thing in unison? It's kinda weird." The High Councillor asked, his voice briefly dropping back to normal, but he quickly coughed and continued. "N..Never the less, the preparations must continue."

"You said you may have found someone worthy of learning the truth, is this true?" The Omnic asked, genuinely curious if what he heard in the group chat was true.

"Yes." The High Councillor nodded, a wicked smirk on his face. "He is exactly what we need. And soon, he will be one of us…"

 **Boom. Done. Sorry this one took a bit longer. Since it was more focused on talking and the last bit of backstory (for now) I had to make sure it was done right. Mad Dawg's in a weird place right now. What should he do? Keep running? Go home? Who knows!?**

 **I do ;)**

 **Trust me. I think you'll like it.**

 **Brigitte will be playing a large roll in this story, Good Boy and Bad Dawg aren't done yet, and another familiar face will be returning soon. And Mad Dawg ain't ready to face that character.**

 **ALSO! I will be working on Zyon's Legacy, Talon: A Dawg's Tale and some other NEW stories! So, check my profile for all the details! And while you're here, reviews are ALWAYS appreciated! Follow the story so you don't miss a chapter, and come back… whenever the next chapter comes out!**

 **ALSO, ALSO. There's gonna be a Q &A With Mad Dawg to celebrate the one year anniversary. If you've got questions, feel free to ask them via a review or a PM! Until next time! See ya!**

 **One last thing, (I SWEAR). If I messed up the idea of the characters with Autism thing I tried, I am SO sorry! I don't have autism, but I thought it would be an interesting idea to have the two characters interact. If I screwed it up, I'm sorry.**


	32. One Year Anniversary Special!

"Hey guys! It's me! Mad Dawg!" Mad Dawg said, giving a quick wave to the readers, his feet kicked up on a stool and a box of chicken wings nearby. "So… I don't know what chapter we're at, or if it's up at this point or not, SkorchNTorch IS working on it, I guarantee, and if it's up, awesome. He's probably working on whatever chapter we're at, but if not, let's hope it's up soon!" Pausing for a moment, Mad Dawg seemed to be thinking about something before he continued. "So… Today's July 14th, it's been one year since my crazy-ass adventure started." Picking up a noise maker, he made a small 'fwee' with it. "Er, I mean, in story form. I'm older than one… I think…"

 **Yeah, you are dude.**

"Oh hey! ST! You ARE here!" Mad Dawg exclaimed. "Awesome! But uh… yeah, one year, and at least 29 chapters! Not bad. Over the course of this year, you amazing readers have left us reviews for the story. And we figured, what better way to celebrate an anniversary of a poorly written story with lots of grammatical errors, than be reviewing the poorly written and grammatically challenged reviews!" Suddenly realizing how that came out, Mad Dawg coughed awkwardly.

"Sorry about that…" He mumbled. "But what this means, is where gonna look at some of the reviews published! And by that, I wanna let you know that there's one or two which won't be shown, because there's so little to them, or they don't work without the context of the story. But hey, know that ST reads everyone multiple times and is more thankful than you can imagine! Also, we're NOT altering the reviews in anyway. So, without further ado, let's begin!"

Picking up a tablet, Mad Dawg scrolled through the screen shots before finding the earliest review.

"So, this one's coming from a dude named ZED147… That kinda sounds like an Omnic name… and I mean that in the best way possible." Mad Dawg commented. "He writes: _I love what you've got so far. I always wondered what it would be like to have Deadpool (or someone like him) in the overwatch world."_ Pausing for a moment, Mad Dawg looked at the readers confused. "Who's Deadpool?"

"Anyhow, he continues: _Just remember if he's like dead pool he needs to be not only insane but ...well... an ASSHOLE! lol cause lets face it if DP meet the the over crew he'd see all da girls and scream AYYYYYEEEEEESSSSSSSS I've finally found a world with kinky women! Ok who's first how bought the Brit. Tracer: sorry luv I'm gay. DP: I can fix that. Tracer:. DP: Oooooh I can bang the ape or are we going to have (pulls out a BFG) Harambe round 2? Overwatch as a whole:...uummm(Fuck). Sunddenly the author jumps from a portal and grabs deadpool. Author: what da fuck are u still doing here all of u especially Winston RUN BITCH RRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUN! Lol any way great job so far I'll be reading every chapter that comes in see ya._ "

Slowly setting the tablet down, Mad Dawg cautiously backed away, holding up two chicken fingers to make a crucifix.

"Please don't hurt me…" He whimpered.

 _SEVERAL CONFUSING AND DISTURBING THERAPY SESSIONS LATER…_

"Um. Okay…" Mad Dawg sighed. "Thanks for that. But… that's weird. You okay? Whatever, next review! This one is from 'Dark'… cool name! And 'Dark' writes _This is some great work u got here keep it up'."_

 **Thanks man! You were one of the first people to comment when this story was still trying to find it's legs, and I hope you enjoy how it's gone!**

 **Hang on…**

 **Lemme look for the next review… Here it is! It's from Mike5122000, who writes;**

 _ **I…I...I...Don't Know what to say about this...its Crayz...its funny...I freakin' like it. So There's a lot of comedy in your story and I need to grin all the time. I am not sure if it's possible to throw a fucking Chainsaw like a frisbee but hey there a talking Gorilla, a Time travelling Girl and an Old woman that heals you with a sniper rifle(around 600m/s Bulletspeed) so a Frisbee Chainsaw should be okay .**_  
 _ **Have Fun and pls Continue writing.**_

 _ **Mike**_

 **Thanks Mike! I'll be honest, I've studied the physics of chainsaws, and I do believe that the 'Frisbee Saw' is practical.**

"Yo!" Mad Dawg called, waving his hands up and down. "My turn! Okay, this review is from some dude named 'GrandmasterVenom… Okay, THAT is an awesome name! But… What's his profile pic from? Is that some anime or something? Whatever. He writes _'Please update this... Please. I'm happy I'm wearing a tight shirt, because I think my sides have split'._ Well, I'm glad you find enjoyment from my suffering."

 **I think he's saying your funny Dawg.**

"…Really? Oh, well, in that case, thanks!" Mad Dawg exclaimed. "You want some Oreos?" Mad Dawg then threw a bag at something. "Behold, the dimensional shattering awesomeness of Oreos!"

 **First of all. Ow. Second of all, this review's from 'GamehunterMC'. Quick question, are you a Dj Gamer? Or a MC who's specialty is gamer-related songs? Whatever. He wrote _'Can't wait for next chapter of this lovely insane tale.'…_ Neither can I dude. Neither can I.**

 **Okay, Dawg. You wanna take the next one? Or You want me to keep going?**

"What?" Mad Dawg said looking up from his drink, surprised he shook his glass and some of his drink spilled out. "Oh. Uh… You keep going. I'm gonna go refill my drink. Be back in a sec."

Well, this one is from 'TheMediatior052' who writes ' _This is a really good story! Mad Dawg is a great character, his development is amazing, and the Christmas stuff was so nice to read!'_

"Thanks M! I'll be honest, It's been a while since I was happy around Christmas… and I'm not sure how this year will turn out either… but… hey, take what you can get and hold on. Hold on to those memories and never let go!"

Sitting back down in his chair, Mad Dawg picked up the tablet and looked on the list. "Okay… Up next is… MrFireTank. YES! This guy is awesome! He writes ' _Oh man, it's about to go DOWN! This is really entertaining to read, and Mad Dawg's character in general is something refreshing to see. Though, it surprised me that he didn't just go all 'Reservoir Dogs' on Hakim but it was awesome nonetheless!'_ Hoo… right… Hakim… Ho boy…"

 **I'll take it from here. Yo FireTank? Thanks for the review, and all the ideas, and for being there to bounce ideas off of. If anyone out there has any ideas, don't be afraid to let me know. Now, onto the next review! Up next is one from 'Jyx The Berserk'. Again, AWESOME NAME! I feel like if You, Me, FireTank, and GrandmasterVenom were to meet up and started playing Dungeons and Dragons, you'd be the Dark Elf Assassin, I'd be the Eladirn Sorcerer, FireTank would be the Dragonborn Fighter, and GMVenom would be the Dwarf Bard! (Grandmaster, I don't really know you all that well, so if that's NOT the kinda guy you'd be, I'm sorry.) And Jyx writes ' _I'm confused about the use of "garbage day" in this story. Can you explain that for me?'_**

"I got this!" Mad dawg laughed, thinking back to that fight with Widowmaker when he thoroughly got his ass kicked, he frowned, before suddenly flipping someone off. "Back in 1987, there was a movie titled _Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2_. The movie was stupid and cheesy, but has become a cult classic due to the cheesy acting, and the infamous 'GARBAGE DAY' scene. I'm a fan of that and the original, but the sequels? Eh… No. They suck." Mad Dawg shook his head. "If you don't know the scene, just go online and type in 'Garbage Day' Meme. You should be able to figure out what I was getting at."

Up next is a 'Guest' account who wrote ' _hahaha 1-800 death and it says votes come put on the 8th chapter which means it's gonna reach that hopefully XD'._ I'll be honest, it's pretty close right now. Those goons could live, and move on to have happy lives, maybe get a beachfront property in Miami, or they might be torn to shreds. The tele-poll is still open!

"Hang on. Are you implying that those guys might still be alive?! What the fu-" **NEXT REVIEW!**

"Ugh. Fine… We've got another from MrFireTank! He writes _'A generic super-hero / man-chicken that fights crime and / or relaxes with you… THAT I can get behind! :P'."_

Pulling a helmet on, Mad Dawg coughed before declaring.

"Yes, it is I! The Crimson Phoenix! Thank you for your support citizen! My crusade against crime has not ended, it's just on break… I think… We'll find out soon enough!"

 **Hopefully we will. And here's our last review. It's from a guest, who writes… wait… holy crap… Umm… Mad Dawg. You're gonna wanna read this one.**

"Why are you laughing?" Mad Dawg asked as he picked up the tablet. He took a drink as he scrolled down, then when he saw the review, coated the tablet with a mixture of whiskey and code red mountain dew. His eyes went comically large and his jaw hit the ground. He stammered for a moment, trying to find his voice.

" _Ugh… How much I was wishing he was living a quiet life with Sombra…"_ Mad Dawg quietly read the review. Mad Dawg then silently got up and left the room.

 **YO MAD DAWG! WHILE YOU'RE OUT THERE DAYDREAMING ABOUT YOUR WIAFU, KEEP AN EYE OPEN! PIZZA SHOULD BE HERE SOON!**

"GO F**K YOURSELF!" Mad Dawg shouted.

 **Heh. Aw, man… He's gonna be pissed. Anyhow, I put out a call for any questions for Mad Dawg or myself, and MrFireTank sent me one! Allow me to read his message.**

 ** _Now, I have two questions that I hope aren't too stupid to ask from me..._**

 ** _1: What was your main inspiration for Mad Dawg / the fanfiction around? Did you (in your opinion) fulfill your goal to coming far with the character?_**

 ** _2\. We all know how far the 'Bad Blood'-arc went, even if it's well written and awesome due to the plot. Yet, did the fear ever arose that you would stretch that part too far?_**

 ** _...I'm sorry again. And to everyone else, I hope you can continue to give this beautiful- uhm, THESE beautiful men your support in their adventure. They deserve every bit from my POV._**

 **Well, once again, Thanks FT, and to answer your question, we need to go back away. About a year to be exact. The idea for Mad Dawg was an idea I had for awhile, some sort of smart-ass character who got into weird adventures and had unique powers. At one point, he was meant to be full-blown villain, in fact, one idea for him was that he would be killer-for-hire who understood where villains went wrong and killed the heroes for them. If you wanna see what that would've been like, look up the author DWAR and his story 'A Villain's Happily Ever After'. Now as for how we got here, the idea to have him in Overwatch came when I was playing one day and thought 'It'd be interesting to have a character who was neutral to both Overwatch and Talon. Someone who could provide an interesting insight to the battle between Overwatch and Talon after being dragged into their war. However, I began reading several Overwatch fics, and saw that was kind of a recurring theme. Not to say it's a BAD idea, most of the stories I read were fantastic. But I noticed this about the Overwatch fanfic community, it essentially fell into one of three groups.**

 **-Romance fits (Genji x Mercy, Reader x Character so on.)**

 **-Dark story about a characters backstory**

 **-A story focusing on someone looking in on the world of Overwatch**

 **I noticed there weren't a large amount of humorous stories (not saying there aren't any, just look up** ** _The OverHouse_** **for a great one!) and I wanted to write a comedic story that would do justice to the Overwatch cast and would allow me to point out some of the goofiness of it all. As for fulfilling my goal, I went WAY beyond my expectations. Originally, Mad dawg was essentially a normal looking Deadpool, a self-aware regranting nuisance who had a sense of humour. But after the first few chapters, I wanted to make him likeable, someone who the reader could see becoming friends with the members of the Overwatch crew, and I believe I've done that. My other concern (as I said a chapter or two before) was writing the Overwatch characters in a good, believable way.**

 **As for Bad Blood? I'm really happy with our it turned out… Mostly.**

 **So, I believe it was both too long, and not long enough. I believe I didn't build up the mystique of Mad Dawg's backstory enough before starting the big event, in chapter two there was an idea planted that he was having memories triggered that he thought were lost, but that didn't own out… For Bad Blood at least. I also believe that I didn't wait long enough in the event for the reveal that he was a creation of Mercy, Moria and Jax, and personally think that could've been handled a bit more dramatically. I also believe that Bad Blood went on a bit too long, especially with the (in all honesty) poorly set up Hakim subplot. That's another thing I didn't really do to well, was explain HOW Hakim got out of OW HQ and into the Junker's hands. But I believe that when Bad Blood worked, it was GOLD. (But that's just my opinion, and considering most of the reviews during that stretch were 'NEXT CHAPTER! PLEASE!' I think the readers enjoyed it too.) I think if there was anything I would change, it would've been to add more conversations between Mad Dawg and the heroes before he disappeared, try and build more of the relationship between them and MD before he left. However, when you're juggling 30+ characters, sometimes you can't write them all perfectly.**

 **Overall though, I achieved more in one year with** ** _A Dawg's Tale_** **than I ever thought I would. It's still a pretty small story, but to everyone who's following or favourited, thank you. You are the driving force behind this story.**

"PIZZA'S HERE SKORCH! AND- Those idiots! They put the pineapple and the anchovies on separate pizzas!"

 **Anyhow, gotta go. Pizza's here, and I need to work on the next chapter.**

 **See you then.**

 **SKT**


	33. Sometimes You Just Have To SING!

**Shout out to The White Buffalo and The Charlie Daniels Band. Their song appears later.**

Aimlessly wandering into the rec centre, Mad Dawg cracked his neck and looked around. Over to his right were a set of chairs were some women who were talking, to his left was a display about the history of Forrest Valley, and in front of him were the doors leading to the main hall. He paused for a moment and frowned sadly. For some reason, the set-up of the centre reminded him of Overwatch's main base. Looking over to the women, he now saw Tracer, Ana and Hana talking, to his left was Torbjörn and Junkrat working away on whatever devices they were concocting this time around. Shaking his head Mad Dawg decided that focusing on the past wouldn't help anything, and it was time to move forward. Speaking of moving forward, Mad Dawg walked through the doors and smiled. He glanced around the room where people and Omnics were playing ping-pong, some older people were playing scrabble, and a Warcraft pinball table was in the far corner.

" _Sweet."_ Mad Dawg thought as he walked over to the pinball table. Thankfully, it didn't require change and Mad Dawg hit 'Start'. Using the flippers, he found himself having to decide between 'Horde', 'Alliance' and 'Pandarians'. While Mad Dawg hadn't played much WoW in his life, he had seen D Va play it, a lot, and he knew that the Pandarians were not only the coolest designed, but the coolest… pretty much everything (next to the Forrest Elves, but Mad Dawg knew nothing about the lore of the game). Pulling back on the launcher, Mad Dawg set to work hitting the flippers with precision timing and launching the ball into the bashers (that's what their called) and sending the ball up and around the track, racking up points like a mad man. Suddenly, Mad Dawg decided to try and play without his hands, so he began hitting the buttons with his elbows. Shockingly, he was doing better than he was with his hands. How that was possible made no sense, but Mad Dawg had learned to sometimes it's better to not question things. However, those in the room with him hadn't learned that and were currently questioning what he was doing. He continued this for about ten minutes until his last ball dropped.

" _THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!"_

Damn it Dawg.

After wrapping up with the game, Mad Dawg spun and got up onto his feet, as he turned and looked behind him, only now did he see the odd looks he was getting.

"What?" He asked aloud. "You never seen someone play pinball with their feet?"

There wasn't an answer, so Mad Dawg shrugged and went off once again. He passed by the medical room and caught a glimpse of who was in the medical room. His face was horrifically disfigured and it seemed like something was… ripped… off…

" _Wait."_ Mad Dawg internally thought, stopping dead in his tracks and looking back in, only to see nothing. _"What the hell was that?"_ Mad Dawg thought.

Shaking his head, Mad Dawg looked around and saw nothing. He looked down and scratched the back of his head, but when he looked back up, he came face-to-face with the twisted, deformed and maskless face of Virus.

"You…" He rasped.

"Agh!" Mad Dawg exclaimed in fear, backing up and stumbling and falling to the ground.

"You'll never be free…"

Before Mad Dawg could reply, Virus was gone, and Twig was looking down at him.

"Yo, Toby dude. You aright man?" He asked, holding his hand out and helping Mad Dawg back up to his feet.

"Yeah, I'm good." Mad Dawg sighed. "I just… wasn't paying attention and ran into the wall."

Twig looked around confused before looking back at Mad Dawg, and Mad Dawg realized how wide the halls were. Twig opened his mouth but remained quiet as he pointed to one wall then looked to the other.

"Okay." He shrugged. "So, uh… I heard you were playing pinball with your elbows and feet… Like, for real?"

Mad Dawg laughed. "Yeah man." He smiled. "I was bored, so… I figured I'd try something new."

Twig just raised a brow the shook his head.

"C'mon man. Walk with me." He said, it would seem like an offer, but it sounded like an order. But Mad Dawg nodded nonetheless and followed Twig back towards the main hall and out the doors, they began walking away from the rec centre and towards a path leading to the woods when Twig spoke up again. "A couple'a generations back, my grandpa decided to build this place, he wanted a calm tranquil place where families could come and stay, hell, even during the Omnic Crisis he wanted this place open."

"Really?" Mad Dawg asked, not having read the history display about this place.

"Yeah man." Twig nodded, his necklace jangling slightly. "He knew that even during the crisis, not all Omnics were bad, he even built some basements to hide Omnic families who were trying to stay out of the fighting. He always believed that everyone was good, sometimes you just needed to be good to them to see it. Anyhow, as the years went on, he like, kept building. New buildings and stuff, the rec centre, the docks, but he always wanted to keep it simple. The simplistic, rustic designs of the cabins and stuff? That was like, by design. Anyhow, my grandpappy passed it onto my old man, who passed it onto me."

"Cool." Mad Dawg commented, genuinely intrigued by the story. "Did your grandfather fight in the crisis?"

"Real briefly." Twig continued. "It didn't take him long to realize that human or Omnic, he couldn't take a life. That's something he tried to teach my daddy and in turn, me."

As they continued walking through the forest, Twig continued his history lesson about Forrest Valley, talking about the how there were only seven cabins to begin, and how in the early days there was barely an electricity at the campgrounds.

"So, for a while, if someone wanted to use the stove, the whole place went dark. Eventually we did manage to get it all up and going. I mean, you think _that_ was like a big deal? You shoulda seen the reactions we go when we got plumbing throughout the cabins and stuff." Twig added before stopping and turning to Mad Dawg. "So… listen Toby, I don't wanna sound weird, but like… are you good?"

"What do you mean?" Mad Dawg asked, puzzled. "The cabin's great and the walk ain't too long to get to the rest of the-"

"That's not what I mean kid." Twig cut him off. "Are you okay?"

Mad Dawg didn't respond. Not sure if he should answer, let alone how to answer if he decided to. He had met Twig like two days ago, was he really about to completely open up to him? Could Twig be trusted? Am I using the question mark to frequently in this chapter? Twig seemed nice, really nice. And Mad Dawg was starting to get a little nervous about how much he was hiding. Maybe he could give him the truth, but also… _not_ the truth.

"If we're being honest… things have sucked for the last little while for me." Mad Dawg began. "I had a massive falling out with my family." Mad Dawg paused and noticed Twig was listening. "Anyhow, my aunt took care of me for a long while, and I didn't realize something and thought she wasn't who she claimed to be. Turns out I was wrong, but when I found that out… I was too far gone. As for my mom… I don't wanna go into that. The long story short is I made some choices to do what I thought was the right thing, and she didn't agree. There was a fight and when the smoke cleared, it was clear I had no place with them anymore."

"Geez kid…" Twig muttered. "What happened?"

"I don't wanna talk about it." Mad Dawg shook his head.

"What about your dad?"

"…he's dead." Mad Dawg mumbled. "He died when I was young, he was the most… transparent so to say. But I didn't know him to well."

"And like… this family stuff. Is that why you're here?" Twig asked, not really wanting to know the answer, despite probably already knowing it.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded quietly.

There was a break where neither one said a word, and the whole forest seemed to continue on anyways. The birds flew from the trees, rustling the leaves and Twig just sadly looked at Mad Dawg. Unbeknownst to them, Brigitte had been helping clear some fallen trees nearby and had overheard enough of the conversation to gauge what was going on. Twig now saw her and nodded. She nodded back and silently slipped away.

"I wanna apologize… but I can't go back…" Mad Dawg whimpered, tears forming in his eyes.

"Kid, hey. Kid." Toby said, getting Mad Dawg's attention. "Family is forever, no matter how hard that might seem to believe."

"I'm… not… fa-" He began but couldn't finish his sentence. He began to silently cry and looked away, and Twig just hugged him, trying to comfort him. After a few minutes, the two went quiet again.

"Hey, Listen T, tonight there's a bonfire and a bunch of us are getting together. We're just gonna like, hang out and stuff but if you're not up to anything, you like should come out."

"Hell yeah I'm in." Mad Dawg smirked, feeling better. "The girl in the cabin next to mine, her names Brigitte I think, can she come?"

"Oh, you inviting your girlfriend ou-" Twig began but stopped when Mad Dawg tried to kick him, laughing he answered. "Dude… she's like, helping organize the whole thing."

"Cool. Just let me know when and where and I'll be there." Mad Dawg nodded.

"We'll stop by your cabin later tonight." Twig said, before putting his fist out for a fist bump.

"See ya then man." Mad Dawg smiled, returning the fist bump. Twig then turned when someone called his name and left to go help clear some more fallen branches and MD headed back to his cabin, feeling like he needed a drink. When he got back, he saw a mess of wires and tools almost making a line towards the cabin door next to his. Walking over to Brigitte's cabin he leaned in the door.

"Yo." He called.

He heard a metallic _clang!_ Followed by a woman grumbling something in another language and then groaning as Brigitte pulled herself up from behind the air conditioner.

"Oh, hey Toby." She said, seeming somewhat awkward. "What's up?"

"Still trying to fix the AC?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Yeah, but the parts I need are missing, so I'm trying to improvise." Brigitte nodded.

"I just hit it and it usually works." Mad Dawg stated. "Usually gets the TV to work again."

"I don't think that'll work this time." Brigitte rolled her eyes.

"Gimmie a sledgehammer and we'll find out."

"…do you have a sec actually? I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Um. Sure, what is it?" Mad Dawg asked, leaning against the doorframe.

"So, don't take this the wrong way or anything…but I was helping clear the tree branches in the woods… and I overheard you and Twig talking."

The colour in Mad Dawg's face drained a little, his eyes seemed to both widen and shut at the same time, _Great, it's one of THOSE chapters_ ran through his mind before finally he sighed and asked:

"How much did you hear?"

"Enough." Brigitte calmly answered. "Listen. I know we've only met a few days ago, and I probably shouldn't get too involved, but do you want to talk about it?"

"If you heard enough to understand, that you probably heard all you need to know." Mad Dawg simply responded.

"Toby…" Brigitte began. "I don't know what to say." She finally admitted.

"And maybe that's for the best." Mad Dawg shrugged. "When people try and help me, they get hurt. I don't want to talk about it." He paused for a moment before giving a small smile. "But… what you've been doing, just… being a friend, it's what I've needed most."

Brigitte smiled back at him. Then groaned as a chunk of the AC Unit fell out and onto the carpet.

"Was that supposed to happen?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Get out before I throw a wrench at you." Brigitte ordered, Mad Dawg however just laughed.

"So… don't take this the wrong way. But do you wanna crash in my cabin?" He paused and coughed before adding. "My… my AC unit is working, and apparently there's a heatwave coming and… Ugh. I'm sorry, that came out wrong…"

Brigitte sighed and got up, shaking her hair.

"Sure, if it's okay with you." She replied.

"Yeah. Uh. Bring your mattress over, I don't think the couches are great for sleeping on." Mad Dawg said. "If you need a hand, I can help you, or have you got this?"

"I'm good Toby." Brigitte smiled. "Hey, you coming to the bonfire tonight?"

"Hell yeah." Mad Dawg said, pumping a fist as he left the cabin. As he walked back to his cabin, two figures sat up in a tree watching him.

"He's starting to break." Good Boy commented.

"Yup." Bad Dawg nodded before taking a swig from a flask and offering to Good Boy who shrugged and took a drink before coughing.

"What is that stuff?" He questioned. "It's… spicy."

"It's called Midleton. She likes it." Bad Dawg commented.

"It's all about what she wants…" Good Boy rolled his eyes, leaning back in the tree. Bad Dawg grumbled and tried to push him out, only for Good Boy to appear a few branches up.

"This isn't going to end well…"

"On that, we can agree." Bad Dawg nodded.

Later that night, once the sun had set and the stars were out, Mad Dawg spent thirty minutes looking for the bonfire site. He could hear the voices of people and Omnics laughing and talking, but he couldn't see too well in the dark. He ended up walking into several trees, tripping over a root, stumbling into a thorn patch and somehow tripping, rolling down a hill, and into the lake. By now, Mad Dawg was tired, hungry, scraped up, and ready to give up and go back to his cabin, which would probably entail another forty minutes of walking, more trees and thorns, and a rabid grizzly bear. Thankfully, on his way back, he found the fire pits. Walking into the clearing, he saw Twig and some others laughing and talking. One of them stopped and got Twig's attention before he looked over and called: "Hey Toby! …um, why are you dripping wet?"

"Got lost trying to find the place." Mad Dawg explained flatly. "Fell into the lake."

There were a few stifled laughs, then a good chunk of the people (and Omnics) present began laughing. Mad Dawg flipped them all off, ignoring the fact that there were children present, and motioned the middle fingers around to all present and began to walk away.

"Toby wait!" Twig called.

"Blow me!" He called as he disappeared into the woods. There were some disapproving boos and calls as Mad Dawg retreated into the woods. One of the Omnics leaned over and slapped him on the chest.

"Good going T." He muttered. Twig sighed and looked sadly at his s'more. Suddenly, Mad Dawg dropped from a tree above him, hanging by his feet and screamed like a banshee. Twig and everyone surrounding the fire pit screamed in unholy terror, and more than a few fell off the logs they were sitting on.

"Dude! Like, what the hell!" Twig shouted, still catching his breath.

"Now we're even." Mad Dawg commented.

"I like, didn't even do nothing to you!"

"Oh yeah… Oh well."

"How you gonna get down?" Twig asked.

There was a creaking sound, followed by a rather audible _CRACK!_

"Aw, crap." Mad Dawg muttered, before falling to the ground. He groaned as he picked himself up and cracked his neck. "Meant to do that."

"Grab a seat kid, we like, saved you some 'mellows." Twig said, handing Mad Dawg a bag of marshmallows.

For the next hour or so, Mad Dawg, Twig, an Omnic named Connor (who worked at some placed called cyber… something or other, Mad Dawg didn't catch it), Brigitte and the others all sat around the campfire, Twig passed around some beers and they had a pretty good buzz going. As time went on, they started telling horror stories… but none of them were very good at it.

"All right, all right... I got one…" Twig laughed as he tried to begin his story, but suddenly stopped when he saw something off to the side. "HOLY CRAP MAN! DON'T TOUCH THOSE!"

A young boy jumped back startled from an oddly, almost star-shaped blue plant. Twig jumped up and ran over to the plant before tearing it roots and all out of the ground.

"Jeez man, I thought we had delt with like… all of these." He muttered, looking at the plant.

"The hell is that?" Mad Dawg asked confused.

"We call them _estrella azul_ , it translates to 'Blue Star'. It's like… a drug type of plant, if you eat it… or even touch it sometimes… you'll like… freak out man." Twig explained, holding the plant by the roots. "We dunno why it grows so prominently around here… but it just kinda does. If you see it, let us know. We need to get rid of it."

"Just by touch? How does that…" Mad Dawg began but stopped when he touched the plant. He blinked and looked down, the forest was now smoldering ground, he looked around in a panic and then saw someone was standing in front of him.

"YoU wIlL NeVEr BE FrEE!" Virus shouted, grabbing Mad Dawg and shaking him violently. "We wIlL fOllOW yOu FOrEvER!"

Mad Dawg yelled in fear and swung hard, his hand going through Virus' face. Virus threw Mad Dawg onto the ground, looking up Mad Dawg saw melted, twisted Omnic remains digging themselves up from the ground, damaged, sparking faces screeching. Suddenly he was pulled back up and was sitting against a tree, with Reaper and Virus looking at him.

"Kid?! Yo, Toby!" Virus shouted. "Get it together man!"

"What's happening to him!?" Reaper shouted in a female voice.

"It's those damn plants! He touched one of em!" Virus shouted as everything seemed to melt away, the dark, burning colours seemed to fade back to the night sky. Virus and Reaper's masks finally melted away, and Twig and Brigitte were looking at him.

"Holy crap. Skorch… what drugs did you take before writing this chapter?" Mad Dawg muttered.

 **None. Don't do drugs kids. Unless you won't get caught or their legalized, then DO ALL THE DRUGS.**

"Holy crap man. I like told you! Don't touch those things!" Twig exclaimed, somewhat in relief.

"No really? I thought I'd try eating one!" Mad Dawg grumbled. "How long was I tripping?"

"All of sixty-five seconds." Brigitte stated before looking to Twig. "Do we need to take him to the medical shack?"

"Nah. He'll be fine, just let him get some air for a sec." Twig instructed as they sat Mad Dawg back down on a log. He pushed them off groaning that he was fine. There were some awkward glances from the others around the fire pit, but eventually people returned to their s'mores. Meanwhile, Mad Dawg was rubbing his eyes until he noticed something.

"Yo, who's guitar is that?" He asked.

"Uh… we just leave it here." Twig shrugged. "Whoever brought it left-handed… and none of us play left-handed."

"Gimmie." Mad Dawg said, motioning for him to be handed the guitar.

"Yes! Now we're talking!" Twig cheered as he handed Mad Dawg the guitar who plucked the strings and tuned it. He then sighed and cleared his throat. He looked around and now saw it was dead quiet, and most of the people and Omnics were watching, waiting to see what he'd do. Finally, he strummed a few chords and sung the only thing he could think of.

"Oh, darlin, darling. What have I done? Well I've been away from you too long. And all my days have turned to darkness, and I believe my heart has turned to stone."

The songs effect was immediate, some were shocked at Mad Dawg's guitar skills and decent vocals, and some were surprised at how the usually off the wall and overly happy Toby was so… somber. No one commented though, curious and entranced by the calming notes. Mad Dawg however, continued as if no one was there.

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Now I don't say anything at all._

 _Well God don't listen to the noise,_

 _Now I'm left here all alone_

 _Ooh, oh, I hear what the neighbors say._

 _That that poor boy he's lost his way,_

 _And I let the others pray…_

Twig seemed to be trying to get his attention, but either Mad Dawg didn't notice him or didn't care as he kept on playing.

"Oh, darlin, darlin. What have I done? Now I do my talking with a gun. And blood will spill into the gutters, and it will stain the morning sun." He paused for a breath then suddenly seemed… angered by some sort of personal thought. "Ooh, oh tell me what the hell I've done. Can I stop at one? Or have I just begun?"

"Is he okay?" Brigitte whispered, leaning over to Twig.

"I got… I honestly have no idea." Twig shook his head. "With what the kid told me… this might be his way of dealing with his issues. Besides, I don't think the others have caught on yet."

"And, ooh, oh, they'll hang me way up high, and God himself will drop me from the sky, and let me swing a while…" Mad Dawg continued, his grim tone still present. As he continued, he began playing more aggressively and began singing louder, as if the song was a cry for help.

 **I'd like to apologize for how thickly this is being laid on, it's just the way the words work.**

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

 _Oh, darlin, darlin_

 _What have I done?_

When Mad Dawg finished, he let the neck of the guitar lower to the ground and looked around, as if just realizing there were people around him. "Oh… Hey." He muttered. "Um… anyone want another song?"

There was no answer.

"Too bad." Mad dawg shrugged before strumming a much more upbeat tune., this time he jumped up and began walking around as he began to sing once again.

"Well, that Reaper went down to the Valley, he was looking for a soul to steal. He was in a bind, 'cause he was way behind and he was willing to make a deal. When he came across this pot head saw him playing on a banjo hot, and the reaper jumped up on a fallen log and shouted: _**KID LET ME TELL YA WHAT.**_ " Mad Dawg finished with his voice becoming demonically low as he got right in Twig's face. "You probably didn't even know it, but I'd say I'm a guitarist to0, and if  
you care to take a dare, I'll just make a bet with you. Now you play a pretty good banjo boy, but give ol' Grim his due. I bet a guitar of gold against your soul, because I know I'm better than you."

"Yeah well, my name's twig and it might be a sin, but I'll like take the bet and you're gonna regret, because I'm the best there's ever been!" Twig responded in tune before the two began stomping the ground and singing the chorus, getting everyone involved. Unbeknownst to them, a small group of hooded figures watched from a distance.

"Are you still sure he is the one?" A female voice asked.

"Yes, we have heard the words of our Diu. He is the one, prepare for the coming storm." One of the other figures responded.

After another hour or two of songs, s'mores and general bad behaviour that didn't hurt people but was still fun, Mad Dawg and Brigitte returned to the cabin they were sharing, while Brigitte took a shower, Mad Dawg waited outside, thinking over the night, finally feeling happy. He liked it here, he could see himself staying for a while. Sure Brigitte, Connor and the others may leave eventually, but he could see himself getting a quiet job here and staying here. He'd be fine with that.

"Hey, I'm going to bed." Brigitte said, leaning out the door.

"Cool. Me too." Mad Dawg nodded as he entered his cabin, shutting the door behind him. Once he was in his room he looked at the mattress, debating on whether or not he should take another look at the files about him, but decided not to. Not this chapter. Flopping onto his bed, he shut his eyes and then opened them, and the sun was shining outside.

" _Wow. I must've been tired…"_ Mad Dawg thought as he got up. He could hear Brigitte talking to someone as he walked to the kitchen.

"Hey Brigitte? Who's…" Mad Dawg began but stopped dead, frozen in place. "Angela?"

Turning over with a kind smile, Mercy briskly walked over towards Mad Dawg.

"Mad Dawg!" She exclaimed. "You're alright! We were _so_ worried!"

"I…uh…" Mad Dawg stammered nervously, before noticing her eyes weren't right, they were red, like fire. Then the medic's hand dug deep into his face and Angela let out a demonic roar.

 **A.N. So things are getting weird. It seems Mad Dawg might be regretting running, or maybe he's severing those last ties to Overwatch. Also, it's clear there's something going on in Forrest Valley, but what could it be? Well, come back… eventually and find out.**


	34. With Special Thanks to JT Music

Mad Dawg winced as Mercy's nails sliced through his skin, cutting him and drawing blood. Mercy's other hand grabbed him under his jaw and tightened her grip, making it hard for Mad Dawg to breathe. She lifted him up with inhuman strength and slammed him into a wall. Suddenly, several pairs or arms burst through the walls and grabbed Mad Dawg, clawing and holding him in place as Mercy slowly produced a large knife and slowly began walking towards him.

"My, my Dawg… Fancy meeting _you_ here." She said in a twisted, sickly-sweet tone. "We've been looking all over for you!" She began walking towards him, like a predator stalking it's wounded prey. And the hands were holding him by his hair, keeping his head back. "Why did you run from us? We wanted to help you… or at least. We did."

"What the hell is going on?" Mad Dawg growled, trying to pull against the hands holding him back. If he tried to fight, the hands just gripped tighter. Some of them began clawing at him, flesh melting away to reveal wires and metal and broken voices screaming in agony.

"We found out what you did… All those innocent people and Omnics…" Mercy shook her head. "Dead. Because of you."

Mad Dawg stopped fighting and stared in shock, after hearing what she said. He didn't see Mercy lifting his shirt up, but did feel the knife slicing deep into his gut, making him scream in pain. Mercy rubber her hand through Mad Dawg's blood before rubbing her fingers and writing something on his chest, one word.

Murderer.

"There we go!" Mercy said with a smile, clasping her hands together. "Much better! Now you'll always know what you are!"

"What the hell is going on?!" Mad Dawg shouted, gasping for air. "I know it's you two Pain and Panic knockoffs! Where are you two?!" He managed to get his arm loose and tried to swing at Mercy, but he couldn't feel his 'other side' trying to get out.

"Oh, my child. Don't fight me, you're my little experiment." Mercy continued, stroking his head, almost like an animal before kissing him on the forehead. "Now pipe down, I need to make a few adjustments to you." Without warning, Mercy pressed the tip of the knife into Mad Dawg's temple and hummed to herself, as if deciding something. Then giggles and began cutting along his face, making Mad Dawg growl in anger. Mad Dawg finally broke free form the arms and punched Mercy hard, having a feeling this wasn't real. Hoping to God it wasn't real. He stumbled and fell to the floor, onto a cold metal floor, this wasn't the cabin. Looking up he saw tv's hung up on the wall, with the agents of Overwatch looking down at him with Virus' logo flickering over their faces. Mad Dawg pulled himself up and looked around, breathing heavily. He looked down, he didn't have any weapons with him, not even his hidden knife.

"Welcome back." Came a voice Mad Dawg hadn't heard before. Turning around, a bloody and disfigured Virus was standing right behind him. His clothes were bloody and torn, and his mask seemed to be diagonally split in half, revealing part of the mutilated flesh behind the mask. "You've been busy. Destroying your life, destroying your friends lives…"

"I also destroyed your life, and I don't regret it." Mad Dawg said, pointing to Virus. "Also, how the hell do you know all of that?"

"Really? Let's HaVe a LoOK…" Virus said, his voice beginning to distort, sounding more like his twisted self and ignoring Mad Dawg's question.

Mad Dawg then heard several sounds of people hitting the ground. Turning back around he came face-to-face with Soldier: 76, Winston, Torbjörn, Genji and Tracer were looking at him, but they all seemed… off. 76's visor was shattered and the glass was impaled in his eyes, his jacket seemed discolored, and barbed wire held some parts of it together, and was wrapped around his sleeves, all the while his plasma rifle seemed larger, with more attachments to it. Torbjörn's mask was down but it seemed more like Virus' mask then his, and instead of a hammer, he was holding an axe. Genji's wiring was protruding out of everywhere, and the metal plates seemed misshapen and misplaced, with blood dripping out from the cracks in between them. Winston seemed to be in his Primal Rage mode, breathing heavily from his nostrils, his fur matted and dirty, with what looked to be scars noticeable on his underbelly. Finally, Mad Dawg's heart fell when he saw Tracer. The usually preppy and upbeat woman seemed tired, her chronal accelerator was cracked and flashing unnaturally. Her face seemed long and tired, her hair seemed dampened by something. Her eyes seemed broken, her body language screamed that something terrible had happened.

"Tracer? What happened?" Mad dawg asked, concern clear in his voice. He tried to take a few steps toward her, but she seemed to get further away with every step he took.

"Why?" She finally whimpered. "Why'd you do this to us? After all we did for you?"

"No." Mad Dawg scowled.

"You broke us." Genji added.

"Stop."

"We trusted you." Winston continued.

"Stop!"

"You were always a monster." Solider: 76 finished. "And we're gonna do what we should've done when we first met you."

Without warning, Solider: 76 opened fire, bullets tearing into Mad Dawg, making him fall backwards onto the ground. But blood didn't pour out from the wounds…

Spiders did.

Hundreds of small, eight legged freaks came crawling out from Mad Dawg's bullet wounds and were skittering all around his body, more and more kept coming, surrounding and swarming Mad Dawg. Very slowly the spiders formed into a single mass, and out of that mass Widowmaker slowly stood up, only now she had eight blood-red eyes and her long ponytail seemed to be made of silk.

"Avec votre mort, le monde ira mieux." She said in her cold tone. Taking her gun off her back and aiming her sniper rifle at Mad Dawg, who suddenly sweeped her leg, bringing her to the ground, and Mad Dawg punched her in the face, keeping her down for a few moments. Suddenly Dawg realized that he was standing on a spider web. He jumped off the edge of it and began falling down through complete blackness, he fell and fell, seemingly forever. Until he landed in another web, his feet getting stuck on the silk. Without warning, Widowmaker dropped from above, hissed, and bit his neck. Long fangs digging into his neck and drawing blood.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL!?" Mad Dawg shouted, trying to wake up from what he could only assume was a nightmare. But nothing happened. Widow's ponytail began wrapping around Mad Dawg, covering him from head to toe in silk, Mad Dawg struggled to get to his boot knife to cut himself free, but the silk surrounded him, crushing him, suffocating him. Then, it began to fill with a strange liquid; the silk solidified, turning to glass. Mad Dawg immediately knew where this was going. As if on cue, Jax and Moira walked by the large tube.

"This is a bad idea." Jax commented, holding a vile of something. "It could make him… an abomination."

"And what is the issue with that?" Moira asked, her tone uncaring.

"…Nothing really." Jax shrugged before attaching the vile to the IV. A purple liquid flowed into Mad Dawg's veins and Mad Dawg screamed in agony as he felt like his body was melting, being burned from the inside out, then he saw what looked like veins that were being pulled upwards and his hands and legs weren't moving when he tried to move them, they seemed to be flailing about. Then he heard a female voice laughing. Looking up he saw Sombra was pulling some bloody strings making him dance about.

"What's wrong _miel_?" She laughed, playing with him. "You wanna cry for mommy? Or you afraid to face what you really are?" She hoisted him up and let go. The strings remaining suspended as she poked him in the gut. "You think I _wouldn't_ have had a plan all along?" She laughed. "Once we were done with Virus, you were next! You're a puppet, not a hero!"

Suddenly, several images flashed by, him and Efi relaxing on the rooftop, Reinhardt carrying him and Torbjörn to Mercy's office after the Christmas chug off, him and Ana drinking tea peacefully, Tracer, McCree, Winston and him playing cards. But those images were followed up by fire, death, him in the power plant as a child, Virus' corpse by his feet, his attack on Mercy. After all he went through, was he a monster?

 _This isn't what I am._ Mad Dawg thought, pushing the negative thoughts aside. _Not anymore_. Focusing himself, and finally he felt more in control, regaining some of his strength he yanked hard, pulling free from the twisted strings and landing on the ground. The impact however seemed to make the ground shift, and he saw cracks appearing. Those cracks continued around him until they formed the Talon logo, then a giant rusted version of Doomfist's gauntlet burst from the ground and snatched Mad Dawg and pulled him down.

 _No._ Mad Dawg scowled, his eyes narrowing. _This time, I fight._

Mad Dawg expected some demonic version of Akande to be waiting for him, but as he saw a fire beginning to form, what he assumed would be Doomfist, two sets of hands grabbed him and yanked him to the side out of the gauntlet. Mad Dawg smashed through the blackness, and it shattered like glass. He landed and rolled across the ground and groaned, now more pissed off than anything.

"I swear, whoever I see next I'm gonna stab in the gut…" He grumbled as he looked up and saw Good Boy and Bad Dawg standing in front of him. "Great." He said with an evil grin. Grabbing a large serrated blade that appeared from… somewhere, he yelled and ran forward. Grabbing Bad Dawg's neck and repetitively stabbing him in the gut, yelling angrily with each stab. Good Boy raised a brow and Bad Dawg just waited patiently for him to be done. After a few more stabs, Mad Dawg slowed down and sighed, dropping the knife. Realizing the knife had turned to smoke whenever he tried to stab Bad Dawg.

"You done?" Bad Dawg asked.

" **WHAT DO YOU TWO WANT!?"** Mad Dawg shouted in anger. **"WHY WON'T YOU TWO JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!?"**

"Calm down Dawg." Good Boy frowned. "You need to fo-"

"NO!" Mad Dawg shouted. "I'm sick and tired of you two constantly screwing with me! Why are you two constantly trying to pull an Inception and mess with my dreams! Don't you two think I have enough issues without you two constantly showing up and making things worse?!"

Good Boy and Bad Dawg looked to one another then back to Mad Dawg.

"We didn't create this dream." They said in unison.

"We pulled you out of it." Good Boy added.

"What?" Mad Dawg asked, almost desperate now for an answer.

"Kid. Stop and look around." Bad Dawg said flatly. "You're tearing yourself apart here, mentally and physically. If you keep going down this path, it's going to get somehow worse than this!"

"Remember when Skorch started this? It was meant to be fun, light hearted, but this… it's kinda dragging on. We, no _YOU_ need to figure this out Dawg."

"And why do you two care so much?!" Mad Dawg shouted.

"Because you clearly don't see the benefits to working with us." Bad Dawg commented, cutting Good Boy off. "Just come with us, we'll put this all to rest. You'll finally be free! You're past, your… other side, all of it. Controlled or behind you, you'll be free. Strong."

"And you?" Mad Dawg spat, looking to Good Boy, who shrugged before stating.

"They still care about you."

"What?"

"Ugh… Seriously?" Bad Dawg groaned. "This crap again?"

"They still care for you. All of them. If you'd trust them, stop thinking they'll all turn on you, they'd be willing to help." Good Boy began. "They're your family, now and forever."

"If they _were_ your family, why'd they treat you like a monster? Why'd they run you out? If they really did care for you, why wouldn't they have come out here looking for you to make amends? Oh, right. You mean _**NOTHING**_ to them."

Mad Dawg grabbed Bad Dawg and threw him threw him through the blackness again, shattering it and causing him to land at the twisted Doomfist's feet. Looking up he grabbed a gun he had on his belt and shot the twisted image, shattering him and turning back to face Mad Dawg.

"You know I'm right!" He shouted. "Even if you do go back, they'll never trust you again! You think that if you go on any mission again they won't stare at you like you're a monster?! Hell, that's if they don't keep you on a damn leash the entire time!"

"And you know that how?" Good Boy reasoned, he was about to continue with what he was saying, only to see Mad Dawg walking away towards the nothingness.

Mad Dawg was tired, stressed and pissed off all at the same time. He didn't know where he was going, or how to get out, but the last thing he wanted was to be stuck talking with Good Boy and Bad Dawg. Only when he looked to the left he saw Good Boy was floating next to him.

"Dawg, if you want this to end, you need to make a choice."

"I made a choice. I left." Mad Dawg coldly replied.

"And look where that's got you." Good Boy commented. "Look, if you join Talon you'll really lose everything. They'll make you the monster they wanted you to be. The one you've been fighting all this time."

"He's not a monster." Bad Dawg commented, appearing from nowhere. "You're stronger than you know, Talon wants to help, let them."

"Look, we know we just did one of these in the previous chapter, but you're giving us no choice." Good Boy shook his head as Forrest Valley began to appear in the nothingness, but it seemed to be overrun with Talon Agents, and all the while, music seemed to be coming from… somewhere.

"Oh no. No, no, no, no, no! A musical number ain't gonna help!" Mad Dawg shouted, realizing where this was going.

"Yo, Skull and Pat. This song was lit, and now it's ours. No infringement intended." Bad Dawg commented, looking at… someone. When he looked back he saw Mad Dawg and Good Boy were gone. "Damn it…"

Mad Dawg felt like he was being pulled behind Good Boy as the two ran up behind some of the agents. "So, you're conscious, but are you woke? If not, your conscience gotta be broke!" Good Boy began, suddenly jumping up behind a Talon goon and throwing him into a wall. "Brainwashed with nonsense, all of these folks. Because, well Talon's got 'em controlled! I read your guidebook, thought it was dope. Honestly, because I thought it's a joke!" He said while holding up a thick book and lighting it on fire. "I'll pass up the physical, I ain't in shape. I'm sorry - Talon's a team that's runs on hate!"

Suddenly, Mad Dawg and Good Boy were in a truck barreling down the road, Good Boy had one hand on the wheel and was shooting a gun out the window at a gas tanker coming towards them. "You're on the run - this mutant has spoken. Chainsaws and guns - we've gone and provoked 'em. Scarin' you off, they're rockin' the boat, like a Dawg with the fangs - and Virus, he felt them! You're leavin' carnage all of over the world as I'm cleanin' your garbage, just like I'm Hawkeye! Ready for judgment? That's what my chainsaw's for. When they enter hell, you'll hold the door."

Mad Dawg and Good boy were suddenly standing up on a mountain looking down at one of Talon's hidden bases, Good Boy tossed Mad Dawg a bazooka and continued singing.

"Never messed with terrorists before. When it comes to peace, we know how _THAT_ will go. I don't wanna trigger your followers, but Akande can we talk about some self-control?" Suddenly, they were surrounded by nearly a hundred Talon goons, and Mad Dawg's teeth were growing into fangs again. "Never mind! Give me a shotgun. It's time to bloody these bastiches!" Good Boy said, shoving a gun into Mad Dawg's chest. "The world ain't ending, take a breath. But I'll make that breath your final!"

Suddenly, Mad Dawg found himself in the tube he was built in, bred in. The liquid surrounding him, he was scared, but them someone lifted him up, as if a Pastor was lifting someone up from a baptism. Bad Dawg looked down at him, and Mad Dawg could see Moira and someone else watching, but they didn't seem to see Bad Dawg. As he was lifted up, Bad Dawg looked him right in the eyes and sung in a deeper, yet gentle tone.

"Who found you while you were lost? When weak, who made you strong? Cause' I'm the mutant of this team. They guide my primal needs."

Bad Dawg put his hand on Mad Dawg's back and motioned around them, and Mad Dawg saw he was back in the power plant, moments after the Omnic Blackout. The younger Mad Dawg was crying unaccountably. But then… Talon appeared, they wore different clothes. They watched him for a moment, then Doomfist picked him up and rested him against his shoulder, walking back to a dropship, where Sombra scooped him up and hugged him warmly.

"Of your past, we'll see you rest. Then I'll set your soul free. Your mother's love is all you need, and it's all built on loyalty."

"The Council and Moira are talkin'. Said they're planin' to conquer and conk em." Good Boy sang suddenly pulling Mad Dawg away, singing in a mocking voice.

"That's insane, no wonder you fear them, what would you say if I told you I capped her?" He asked, holding up a smoking gun. Suddenly appearing in the old Junkyard with Junkrat and T-Bone, setting the Ex-Wife off and blowing up a car.

"Explosives are my toys. I'm a Far Cry from an Talon boy! Trust me, I'll enjoy when I destroy

your whole team and all who ever joined. Cause I hate to break it but you're all deranged.

You team is all criminally insane! I get Reyes wants to be edgy, but honestly, he looks like he's flamboyantly gay. It's time to hire some guns, call in the hogs, and fire them up. Yo Mako, wanna crack necks? Break without regret? Then get me their weapons and bring me their heads!"

Good Boy was then looking at a list, wearing a red suit and hat and had a white beard. He sat in front of a fire then looked to Mad Dawg.

"Oh yes, we've got some bad seeds. And we know you've done some bad deeds. 'My family will never forgive me!' Wait what? Are you not asking for Mercy?" He continued, tearing off the costume and walking over to Mad and Bad Dawg before addressing the latter.

"So, you better pray, like you're in the pews. Get down on your knees, and then kiss my boots. I'm gonna make Akande call me "daddy"."

"Ew." Mad Dawg commented.

"Just like the rest of you!"

"Who found you while you were lost? When weak, who made you strong? Cause' I'm the mutant of this team. They guide my primal needs." Bad Dawg countered, walking away (taking Mad Dawg with him). The two found themselves in what looked to be a training room, where a younger Mad Dawg was currently benching pressing weights, with Akande spotting him. Despite being young, Mad Dawg was lifting a decent amount. Off to the side, Moira and Widowmaker were watching, and surprisingly, Moira seemed impressed.

"Of your past, we'll see you rest. You'll be strong and live free. Your mother's love is all you need, and it's all built on loyalty." The world shifted again to what seemed to be a lounge, Bad Dawg (or possibly Mad Dawg) writing in a journal, Sombra was doing something aimlessly with her hacking gear, and Moira was drinking coffee. Off to the side, Reaper seemed to be cleaning his gun. "A mutant freak, is what they see, but that's not what you were meant to be. The garden's overrun with weeds. But Jack can't uproot what runs so deep. When she speaks it's filled with lies." He added, a shadowy image of Mercy fading in than out. "The claim to help, yet left you to die. Although you might not know it, your families here and they won't forsake you."

Changing one last time, Mad Dawg found himself to be much smaller, pulled by some unknown force behind Bad Dawg as they walked down a hallway.

"Who found you while you were lost? When weak, who made you strong? Cause' I'm the mutant of this team. They guide my primal needs." As Reaper walked by the two high-fived and kept walking. "Of your past, we'll see you rest. Then I'll set your soul free."

Suddenly, Mad Dawg found himself falling again, back into the eternal blackness. But this time it seemed more like water than anything. Above him Moira slowly descended, reaching her hand out to him, offering it for him to take, all while Bad Dawg's voice continued, having disappeared somewhere, but getting quieter all the while, with one line being clear as the rest (and the music) faded away.

"Your mother's love is all you need, and it's all built on loyalty."

"Wait!" Mad Dawg tried to shout as everything seemed to be getting brighter, Moira's hand moved past his own and onto his shoulder and began shaking him.

"Crapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrap Kid! WAKE UP!" A voice yelled shaking him.

Coughing violently, Mad Dawg opened his eyes again, and suddenly felt dozens of injuries, making him yell in shock and pain. Looking down at himself, MD realized he had been cut dozens of times by what looked to be thistles and tree branches… Wait. How was that possible? He was in his cabin the entire nig-

Mad Dawg's train of thought came to a screeching halt when he realized he wasn't in his cabin, but at the base of a Cliffside. Looking back Mad Dawg saw Connor shaking him urgently.

"Kid?! Toby! Are you in there?!" He shouted, trying to snap Mad Dawg out of his odd trance.

"Ugh….Hank?" Mad Dawg groaned.

"What? No. It's me, Connor!" Connor said, trying to get Mad Dawg to look at him. "Twig! We found him!"

There was some rustling and Twig suddenly slid down the cliff side and came to a stop next to Mad Dawg, seeming relieved, confused and terrified.

"Oh thank God you're alive!" Twig exclaimed. "What were you doing?!"

"I… I dunno." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Last thing I remember… I was in my cabin going to sleep…" Mad Dawg tried to speak more, but gurgled the rest of his words and slumped forward. His wounds starting to get to him.

"You think it was the Blue Star?" Connor asked, looking over to Twig, who thought it over than shook his head.

"I don't think so." Twig frowned. "He didn't ingest the plant, like, he didn't, right?" He asked Connor, who shrugged.

"How should I know?" Connor finally asked. "But more importantly, what do we do with him?"

Twig paused, thinking it over, he looked down at his necklace, rubbing it between his fingers, then replied: "We're taking him to the bunker." Conner was about to reply when Twig cut him off. "That isn't up for debate, the kid's hurtin' man! Like, we gotta help him! C'mon!"

Connor and Twig each put an arm around Mad Dawg and they carried him up from the valley side and towards the Rec centre. However, they went behind the main building and pushed a dumpster to the side, making sure they weren't followed, the two opened a door on the ground and carried him down some stairs, the two turned and went down a hall and entered an underground medical bay. A woman coming in from the other side, clearly annoyed at being awoken this early.

"Twig, what did I say about trying to stick your twig in the shampoo bot-" She grumbled but then stopped when she saw Mad Dawg lying on the table. "Who the hell is this?"

"This is Toby. He's a guest, and my friend." Twig stated. "Like, help him!"

The woman looked at Twig then nodded.

"Right." She began. "I'll need…I'll need…" she repeated her words as she stared in shock as she saw Mad Dawg's wounds healing themselves. "What the hell is this kid's deal?"

"I, uh… wow… I really have no idea." Twig shook his head, slack jawed in amazement as Mad Dawg healed on the table in front of them. He then looked to Connor and the Doctor and added. "This should go without needing to say, but tell like, NO ONE."

"Ugh… it's not Saint Patrick's Wrench… we need to stop drinking." Mad Dawg groaned, still coming to on the medical table. He slowly got up and the doctor immediately gently pushed him back down.

"Hold on there love." She said. "You might _look_ better, but you just had a bad fall. Not to mention that you _did_ have Blue Star in your system, and that takes a while to filter out."

"You're not Angela… Who the hell are you?" Mad Dawg groaned, his eyes still attempting to re-focus. He saw a woman who seemed to be a doctor, but she looked nothing like Mercy.

"My name's Kayla, honey." Kayla introduced herself. "Now PLEASE lie down!"

"Alright, fine, jeez…" Mad Dawg grumbled. Lying back down he could see Connor and Twig looking down at him. "What are you two doing here?" He asked.

"We found you kid." Connor stated. "You were wandering through the woods, Twig and I tried to call out to you, but you seemed to be in a trance. Before we could catch you, you decided to try and cliff surf. Before you ask, it didn't end well."

"Toby… Like, the hell man?" Twig asked in his confused way. "What happened to you?"

"I don't know." Mad Dawg shook his head. "I was asleep. I think. All I remember was going to my cabin and going to bed, and then…" Mad Dawg trailed off and decided not to continue. Connor and Kayla seemed confused, but Twig's eyes widened slightly, sadness apparent in them.

"Well, how you doing T?" Twig asked.

"I'm fine." Mad Dawg groaned.

"HOW?!" Connor and Kayla shouted, surprising Twig and MD.

"…Okay, if I'm gonna tell you this, you can't tell anyone." Mad Dawg mumbled, leaning up and rubbing his arm, seeming embarrassed.

"What is it honey?" Kayla asked, sitting next to him on the medical table.

"I…I have this thing, uh, with my body." Mad Dawg awkwardly began, trying to figure out how to word it. "It lets me live through a lot of crap that should've killed me. It also heals my body, really fast."

"So, you're a mutant?" Connor asked.

"No, I'm not a mutant, I just have… this quirk with my body that alters its genetic structure and allows it to rapidly regenerate damaged cells."

"That's the definition of a mutant." Connor commented flatly, Kayla and Twig shooting him annoyed looks.

"And the definition of 'asshole' is quickly becoming Connor." Mad Dawg muttered. Swinging his legs off the table, he stood up and sighed, cracking his body and looking around the room at the others present. "Look, I've been through worse. At this point, I'm going back to my cabin."

"No. You're not." Kayla insisted, trying to get him to sit back down. "Healing ability or not, you need to stay here."

"And what the hell are you gonna do to stop m-"

"Guys! Like, chill." Twig said, moving his hands through the air in a 'relax' way. "Kayla, Connor. Can you guys give up some space?"

Kayla sighed then nodded, Connor followed behind her as they shut the door behind him.

"Toby… does this have anything to do with your family?" Twig asked without a second thought.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. Then realized what he had just said. "Shit…" he cursed under his breath.

"This is why you're hanging out here?" Twig asked, calmly.

"Hm." Mad Dawg quietly replied, not making eye contact.

Twig sighed and flopped down in a chair and spun around a few times, whistling in realization. He ran his hands through his hair then looked at Mad Dawg.

"Get outta here kid." Twig said. "Get back to your cabin. Kayla and Con won't talk man. I don't know everything about what you've been through, but I don't think I need to know."

"R..really?" Mad Dawg asked, genuinely taken aback. "Why?"

"Kid, I don't need to know everything, but I know you're figuring some stuff out. That's all I need to know."

"Thanks Twig." Mad Dawg smiled. "You're a good friend." Getting up and walking towards the door, Mad Dawg turned back to Twig. "I'll see you later man."

Slipping back up into the night, Mad dawg silently ran across the yard. He jumped up onto a dumpster and onto the rec centre roof, he ran and jumped and swung off of a tree branch and onto a cabin roof. He jumped as quietly as he could onto another, then another, then landed on his roof. Dropping off the roof he slipped in through the window in his room he had left open and sighed. He pulled the torn clothes off and stuffed them under his mattress he got into some track shorts and a t shirt and leaned out from his room. Brigitte was snoring loudly as she slept on the couch and Mad Dawg went to his room and went to sleep. For the rest of the night, Good Boy and Bad Dawg weren't present, and Mad Dawg was fine with that.

Meanwhile, Connor and Kayla were walking down a hall, and Connor turned to Kayla.

"I'm sorry, you were right." He nodded. "He's the perfect partido para el Uthikazikazi."

"I told you so." Kayla nodded. "She will be pleased. He's everything she could want."

"But will he join our cause?" Connor asked.

"Leave that to the phezulu kuhle umphathi ubhuti." Kayla replied. "He'll bring him to the light, and find the one the diouse said must be offered up."

 _The next morning…_

Mad Dawg woke up and tentatively looked around, trying to determine if this was another dream or not. As he walked out to the main room, he saw Brigitte doing some workout stuff as he walked in.

"Hi Toby!" She said in between sit-ups. "How'd you sleep?"

"Good." Mad Dawg lied. He put one of his hands into his pocket and something fell out. A d20 rolled across the floor and Brigitte stopped and picked it up. She looked confused for a moment, then her eyes widened as she looked from the die to Mad Dawg.

"Don't laugh." Mad dawg said flatly.

"You play Dungeons and Dragons?" Brigitte asked, not with a mocking tone, but with a hopeful tint in her voice.

"Y..yeah…" Mad Dawg mumbled, embarrassed.

"Finally!" Brigitte exclaimed laughing, surprising Mad Dawg. "I love that game! But I never find anyone else who plays it!"

"Let me grab some books." Mad Dawg said, not even asking the question. He left and returned a few moments later setting some books on the coffee table and handing her a sheet. "You remember your character?"

"I think so…" She frowned trying to remember. Suddenly, Twig's voice called from outside:

"Hey! You two should kiss!"

"Eat a dick Twig!" Mad Dawg retorted.

"You're not nice!" Twig yelled in response, suddenly walking into the cabin like a white family enters a house that's been abandoned for one hundred years because everyone keeps going missing in it. "What the hell are you two doing?"

"Dungeons and Dragons." Was all Brigitte said, reading through one of the books.

"Always wanted to try that game… Just never got around to it." Twig mused.

"Then sit your ass down and let's make a character!" Mad Dawg said.

"Can Connor join?"

"No." Mad Dawg and Brigitte and Mad Dawg said flatly in unison.

"RACISTS!" Connor shouted from outside.

"Why the hell is everyone creeping outside my cabin?" Mad Dawg asked, genuinely confused. "Tell Connor to get in here BTW."

As the four began rolling and creating new characters, Mad Dawg laughed, the fears and pain form last night once again fading away.

On the other side of the planet, (Egypt to be exact) the agents of Overwatch had just secured the last of some artifacts that were on loan to a museum in the vault where they would be maintained, and now the agents were heading towards the nearby town to be picked up.

"That was easy." Tracer commented aloud.

"Yup." Roadhog said in his deep tone. Tracer looked around and no one else commented, she shook her head and looked around at the buildings as they walked through the small town.

"Is something on your mind?"

Tracer looked over his shoulder and smiled at Pharah.

"Not really." She shook her head.

"You're lying." Pharah simply replied. "It's about Mad Dawg isn't it?"

"…yes." Tracer nodded. "I just wonder if he's okay, that's all. He may not have left on good terms but he was still our friend."

"Right…" Genji commented from behind them. But after seeing the look Pharah gave him, he stopped. Now Pharah seemed like something was on her mind.

"He'll be fine." She finally said.

"What makes you say that?" Tracer asked curious.

"When I last saw him, it was clear there was more going on than we knew."

"YOU SAW HIM!?" Tracer exclaimed, surprising everyone around them. Pharah just pulled Tracer into an alley way so they wouldn't be overheard.

"Briefly. After the events in Numbani, he fled. He jumped on a train and began train hopping to get around the world mostly unseen. However… we happened to run into one another briefly."

 _Orkney, Scotland, some time ago…_

Pharah gazed out over the countryside, it was quiet, there was no one but her and the bleating of sheep. Overwatch had received a tip that possibly Talon had been setting up a new base in Scotland and several agents were dispatched to look for it. She took to the sky once again, flying by a stone bridge as a train chuffed across it. She noticed someone jump off the roof and begin climbing up the hill, something about him was familiar. Then she saw it, the jean jacket.

 _It can't be…_ She thought. Flying closer, she saw it was indeed Mad Dawg. It had been nearly four months since anyone had seen or heard from the ex-agent, and the search had been long and hard before being considered useless. As he climbed up a hill, Pharah flew up the hill to land next to him, the sound of the train muffling out her rocket pack. She was in disbelief when she saw for sure now that it WAS Mad Dawg. He didn't seem any different from when she had last saw him. But what was he doing out here?

"Mad Dawg." She said, landing behind him. Mad Dawg dropped the bottle of whiskey he was drinking and slowly turned around.

"Shit." Was all he said, eyes wide and face pale. Pharah hadn't seen him like this. He stood up to try and run but slipped on the wet grass and fell backwards down the hill. Suddenly, one of his hands dug into the hill and stopped him with inhuman strength. He stood back up and tried to conceal the fear in his face.

"What do you want Farrah?" Mad Dawg asked, knowing the answer.

"What are you doing here?! We've been looking for you for months!" Pharah exclaimed.

"I don't want to be found." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Not after what I've done."

"Which is?" Pharah bluntly asked, not having heard the entire story about what happened that day in King's Row.

"Overwatch took a huge risk even saving my ass. If it was anyone else, they would've left me to die in that Talon base. But they took me in and made me feel like for the first time in a long time, I had a family. And I took that, and I shat all over it. I can go back, not after what I've done."

Pharah clearly knew there was much, much more than that. But she knew this wasn't the best time to ask.

"Come with me." She said. "We can go back and figure this out."

"No." Mad Dawg said, his voice deepening suddenly. "You're all a lot better off without me."

Farrah looked into his eyes and saw something other than anger. Pure fear. Mad Dawg was terrified of something.

"Who's chasing you?" She asked, trying to sound calmer, more like a mother.

"You." Mad Dawg responded, and Pharah sighed.

"Farrah. You know what it's like to be lied to, led to believe the world or one thing is one way but in reality, it's another. That feeling of confusion, fear, questioning your existence and everything you ever knew? That's my life right now. The last thing I need is your 'help'. If you wanna help me, leave me alone."

Pharah was taken aback, shocked at his response, but she thought it over. She had her duties as an agent of Overwatch and Helix security, to protect and report potential threats, but she also knew Mad Dawg wasn't a threat in this case. The state he was in was one of fear, not anger. She sighed and shook her head.

"Go." She said.

Mad Dawg didn't' reply, he slid down the hill and jumped onto the roof of a passing train and disappeared, Pharah watching the train enter a tunnel and disappear from sight.

"Pharah. Have you found anything?" Solider 76's voice came in through the comm.

"No. She replied.

 _Present Day…_

"So where is he now?" Tracer asked, taking it all in.

"I don't know." Pharah shook her head. "One thing we were taught in Helix Security was how to read someone, and Mad Dawg has something very, very wrong with him. He isn't going to hurt someone, but he needs to figure this out on his own."

Tracer seemed sad but also nodded, understanding that this was the way it had to be. The two walked back into the town and walked towards the dropship.

Unbeknownst to them, one of Hakim's old hidden security systems was in the alley they talked in, and Talon was currently listening to them.

"So, what you we do?" Reaper asked. "If he's still out there…"

"Leave him." Akande said dismissively. "We have more important things to deal with." He looked over to Widowmaker. "You know where to meet them?"

"Yes." She nodded. "Tomorrow the weapons will be delivered."

"Good." Doomfist said as he left the room. "Let's see if this cult is as loyal as they claim."

Several hours had passed as Mad Dawg, Connor, Brigitte and Twig played D&D and it was getting dark. Twig and Connor had left for the night and were taking a shortcut through the woods when several robed figures stepped out in front of them. They gave an odd bow then one of them asked.

"How you found the one to offer up?"

"Yeah. The girl in the cabin with Toby. She'll suit our needs." Twig nodded. "Let us go brothers, the harvest begins tomorrow, and the Diosa araña shall arrive. We must be ready."

 **A.N. Done.**

 **Also, I swear there won't be any more songs in this story for a while. That was SUPPOSED to be the only song in this entire fic, but I got carried away and was having a good time with it. Also, the next chapter is the finale of this story arc! There's a lot that's gonna go down. Talon's got plans, the Cult has plans, and Mad Dawg… he's making plans.**

 **Special thanks to JT Music. Their song 'Sheppard of this Flock' is amazing. Go listen to it.**

 **Also, something no one has noticed yet, Mad Dawg dosen't know who Brigitte is…**

 **See you next time!**


	35. The Crazy Cult's Cookoo Harvest!

**So normally I wouldn't do this, and normally I don't think any author would do this, but the first chunk of this chapter is kinda held together with duct tape and prayer. It's not nearly my best work but the second half is great. Just bear with me, I'm back on track soon.**

"Okay…" Mad Dawg breathed cautiously. "As you slowly make your way down the hallway, you can't help but feel like there's something in there with you."

"Well duh." Twig replied. "There's like, these two and the other dude in our party."

"I mean there's something _else_ Mighty Oak." Mad Dawg said flatly, rolling his eyes slightly while Connor and Brigitte laughed, Twig seemed to realize this and laughed awkwardly.

"Twig, you're the barbarian. You're not meant supposed to be the smartest." Connor laughed.

"In shock at the noise I turn and attack Celtax." Twig said flatly.

"What?! You can't do that!" Connor exclaimed, looking to Mad Dawg, who just smiled in response.

"Actually, he can. Roll a d20, Connor, what's your armor class again?"

"Agh… no…." Connor groaned annoyed. The campaign hadn't been going to well for him. He failed to make a magic check on a treasure chest that turned out to be a Mimic, which took a decent bite out of the Ranger. Then he tried to make an intelligence check but ended up insulting a goblin chief's wife, leading to the party having to run like hell. Twig and Connor were still pretty confused, but compared to how it was going a few days ago, things were much better. On day one, Twig attempted to cast healing spells… despite being the barbarian. Now, Twig looked at the d20 then rolled it. The die hit the table and rolled around suspensefully then stopped.

"That's like… a 20." Twig commented, sending the group into hysterical laughter, except Connor.

"Turning in fear, you accidentally let go of your string and your arrow flies directly into Celtax's chest, dealing…" Twig rolled and Mad Dawg continued. "Eight points of damage."

"I swing my club back and smash it into Mighty Oak's face." Connor then stated.

"Should I start getting ready to heal these idiots?" Brigitte smirked over to Mad Dawg.

"Yes." Mad Dawg said flatly.

Meanwhile, underneath the camp grounds, dozens of robed figures carried crates around the large open room. Some of them were setting up flowers or straightening out carpets and setting out candelabras. One of the smaller figures walked up to a figure with a purple streak on his arms and bowed.

"Sir?" He asked timidly.

"What is it my child?" He asked.

"The phezulu kuhle umphathi ubhuti claims he found a mate for her… What does that mean for us?"

The man smiled down and replied.

"The Göttin des Mülls will tell us what to do. Just wait. We will not be forsaken when the harvest begins tonight, life with faith, and you shall see."

"Thank you." The smaller figure nodded.

"Go Brother Dennis, prepare for the arrival. The Tillbedare av sopor will be prepared for their arrival."

Dennis nodded and returned to aligning several carvings and animal bones down the aisle. While other members took bits of the Blue Star and ate them, shuddering and laughing paranoid. Some of them continued working on moving the creates full of explosives and automatic weapons to a secure location. The figure at the front removed her hood and Kayla smiled wickedly at the scene being set up around her. The Goddess was going to be coming to the grounds! Once she arrived, the harvest would begin, and the loyal followers would ascend to the next plain of existence. The world would begin anew and the The Tillbedare av sopor would be there at its creation.

Back above ground, Mad Dawg and co. were taking a break, grabbing some drinks and food, cracking their joints and so on. Mad Dawg glanced over to the guitar he had 'found' at the campfire and remembered something from that night, something he wanted to ask Twig about.

"Hey T." Mad Dawg said, getting Twig's attention. "That plant I came into contact with. The Blue whatever… What exactly IS it?"

"The Blue Star?" Twig asked, looking up from his coffee. "Like… It's a plant. But it's also a type of weed, y'know, like the drug type. Simply touching it… well you know what happens if you _touch_ it. But eating it? Man, it's way, WAY worse..."

"What happens?" Brigitte asked.

"Well, for starters the auditory and visual hallucinations will last much longer. Sometime even up to a full day. It also has the same effect as hemp, so you do get high in a sense. But it also causes your heart to go crazy. I've met people who like, in small doses can eat it and be fine… for a while. I've even had some claim it causes you to randomly speak in other languages."

"Wait… how does it make you speak other languages?" Mad Dawg asked confused.

"I dunno kid." Twig shook his head. "But like, it's real. I've ate on of em' before and like it's weird. Don't try em'."

"On the note of eating, do you have any of those double stuffed Oreos?" Connor asked. "Kayla ordered them, we were wondering if they've come in yet."

"N..no they're not in yet." Twig said, his eyes darting around nervously. Suddenly, he saw something outside the window and frowned. "Hang on, I'll be back in a sec."

Slipping outside, Twig walked over to a trashcan outside Mad Dawg's cabin and threw a rock at a small racoon who snarled in response and ran off. Nodding in satisfaction, Twig walked back into the cabin and closed the door behind him, not noticing the hooded figures standing in the forest.

Across the world, Amélie Lacroix sat silently as the plan was laid out again for her in one of Talon's debriefing rooms. It was simple, go to this small forest campsite, meet with… 'The Order of the Forest' as they called themselves, and get the weapons they had. In all honesty (although she didn't care) she wasn't sure what to expect from this. During communications, one of them had yelled 'Diosa' which Sombra translated to 'Goddess' and from what she understood, they were some sort of religious fanatic cult, so she understood she had to tread lightly. She wasn't much of a talker, but the last thing she needed was to accidentally piss them off. This was the reason why Sombra had been barred for going on this mission. Regardless, after tonight, it would all be over, and she'd never have to go back to Forrest Valley.

 **Meanwhile, Skorch sat at the laptop that they were used to using for writing, realizing there were a lot of random jumps there and that honestly there wasn't really any good way to make them logically work, so… sorry.**

 _Several Hours Later…_

Connor and Brigitte had long since left to do other things, Connor going to help at the mess hall with the dinner aftermath, and Brigitte returning to the woods to continue to remove fallen tree branches. As she hoisted another fallen branch over her shoulder she carried it back to the pile she had been making over the past few hours. Tossing it down she noticed something she hadn't seen before. On one of the large oak trees was a carving of a tree with an eye in the center of it. Cautiously she approached it and leant over to look at it. She shrugged, eventually believing it wasn't important and ash she turned around, she came face-to-face with a hooded figure who blew something in her face.

"What the hel…" She began but began feeling tired before collapsing to the ground, having fallen asleep. Several more of the hooded figures walked out and picked her up.

"She needs to be prepared. Let's go." One of them said as they carried her off.

Meanwhile, Mad Dawg and Twig were sitting on the dock down by the lake, shoes off, feet in the water. It was calm, soothing, Mad Dawg felt relaxed, he felt happy.

"So, you've been here like, a week, right?" Twig asked.

"A week or close to it. I don't think daily continuity is that important to the author."

 **Most of the time… And it's been eight days.**

"Alright, cool." Twig nodded. "You liking it here and all that?"

"Yeah. It's great!" Mad Dawg smiled. "I feel relaxed, like I'm a whole different person here, like I've made a great impact on those around me."

"Well, I can say for sure that Connor, Kayla and I have enjoyed having you here… That one night not withstanding and all…" He muttered. "C'mon kid. Walk with me."

Getting up, Mad Dawg followed the hippie leader of Tree Valley down a dirt path, into the trees.

"Are you okay? Like, the other night, you got really badly beaten up. Most people would still be in a hospital!"

"Well, I'm not most people." Mad Dawg shrugged.

"True." Twig nodded with a smirk. "Listen kid… If you were offered a place to stay here, would you?"

"What?" Mad Dawg asked confused.

"Like, I live here 365 days a year." Twig explained. "I have a staff who take care of this place during the winter and spring when it's not nearly as busy and all… But if we had a place for you, would you want to stay?"

"Twig… I don't know what to say." Mad Dawg said, genuinely surprised. "Why'd you offer me something like that?"

"Because you got dealt a shitty hand on life bro." Twig said. "When you showed up here, I knew there was something wrong with you, and that there was something special with you. And after what you told me and what I've seen… I wanna help you man."

"Well…I…"

"Don't answer." Twig cut him off shaking his dreads. "If you want to, go here at seven tonight." Twig said, handing him a map. "If your answer is yes, I'll see you then."

Mad Dawg was left with his thoughts. Was this what he wanted? Well… it was! A home with people he liked, hell, who even cared for him. Who didn't think he was a freak because of what he was… But then again…

"They don't even know your real name." A familiar voice spoke up.

Looking over to his left, Mad Dawg frowned when he saw Good Boy and Bad Dawg chilling in a tree.

"I swear, if you two burst into song again, I'm gonna kill the author."

"Listen kid." Bad Dawg said. "I just wanna let you know something."

"Let me guess. Talon's better?" Mad Dawg said flatly.

"Yes, but I actually have a reason now."

"Oh, _THIS_ should be good." Good Boy and Mad Dawg said simultaneously.

"Look, Doomfist knows what you did." Bad Dawg began. "He's known ever since we, er, you killed Virus. But what did he do with that information? Nothing."

"What?" Good Boy asked, puzzled.

"If you have information that could force someone to bend over backwards to do what you want, what would you do with it?" He asked. "You'd friggin' use it to control them or ruin their life. But he never did. Before we joined up with Talon, he never even threatened us with it." As he began go walk away, he lit a cig and paused. "Maybe they're not as bad as you think." With that, Mad Dawg walked away into the woods.

"And you?" Mad Dawg asked, looking over to Good Boy, who shrugged.

"Your choice now. Either way, it's your choice." He said cryptically before disappearing.

That night, Mad Dawg followed the map to behind the rec center and to one of the garbage dumpsters which now had a red carpet laid out in front of it. Lifting up the lid, Mad Dawg saw a note which simply read: _Welcome to the Family kid. Take a shot and jump in._ Picking up a bottle of vodka he took a swig and jumped into the dumpster, only to realize that the bin had a false bottom and he began sliding down a long tunnel.

"Woo hoo!" Mad dawg laughed as he slid down the tube. Suddenly, he felt… off. And then he remembered something from when Sombra drugged him, there was an odd aroma to the rag she used. And that the vodka did taste off, familiar in a way. Then it hit him.

" _Aw, crap."_ He realized as he began to black out, believing the greatest prank of all time was in store when he woke up.

Oh boy was he wrong.

The Tillbedare av sopor all finished setting up the main hall for the 'Harvest' tonight, and the leader of the group walked into the room, and all the members cheered upon his arrival.

"Be ready! The Diosa arrives soon!" He boomed.

About half an hour later, a Talon dropship landed outside of Forrest Valley in the well, Forrest. Widowmaker and about a dozen Talon agents left the ship and looked around confused, until they saw the sign pointing towards a set of stairs with a velvet rug. Widowmaker went ahead of them and made her way down the stairs surrounded by the agents. Upon reading the bottom, several hooded figures gasped when they saw her and ran behind the large wooden doors.

"SHE'S ARRIVED!" One of them shouted, and all the members of The Tillbedare av sopor ran around the room getting into position, some began playing music, and the leader of the group walked between the open doors and up to Widowmaker.

"Welcome _diosa_." Twig said with a bow, confusing the Talon agents, especially Widowmaker.

"What are you talking about?" She finally asked.

"We have awaited your arrival, as it was written in the stars." The man said. "We have prepared for your arrival diosa, it is an honour to meet you."

The agents went silent, until it began to dawn on them what they were talking about.

"Um… Widowmaker? I think they're talking about _you_." One of the agents whispered to her. Then it occurred to Widowmaker, that they _were_ talking to her. That whole 'Goddess' thing they had overheard… It wasn't some cult worshipping some made up deity…

They were worshipping _her_.

Almost immediately, she decided to do her best to play along, she simply nodded.

"Well, do you have what we need?" She simply said.

"Yes, please come with us." The man said, motioning towards the large door. As the two began to walk towards it, leaving the other agents behind, the man continued. "We've been lost, so to say but when we found the messages you sent, we knew we had a future, one of power and eternity."

At this point, Amélie was completely lost. Messages? What messages? The 'give us the weapons and we won't kill you' threats Talon had subtly sent to a man named 'Twig'? How did that translate into a religious manifesto? Still it didn't matter. After they had the weapons, this group would be dealt with and it would all be over. As they entered the large hall, candles were lit and large drapes were set up, with bowls of fruit and robed members sitting in pews all silently looking in amazement as she and the leader walked up the row towards the front.

"We do have what you've asked of us, but first we want to thank you for the direction you've given us. We believe that the hope you've given us was a sacrifice until yourself, and so we offer you this sacrifice."

Widowmaker looked, and was genuinely surprised to see Brigitte chained to a table in front of her. She was clearly struggling against the restraints but her mouth was covered and it was clear they knew who the other was, as the hate in her eyes was blazing.

"Those who come here are not here by choice, but by calling." The leader continued as Widowmaker smirked wickedly down at Brigitte. "There's a call in the world to come and be unified under like, one idea. The idea of what you've given us. The strength and fear you impose yet the love you show by being willing to meet with us." The leader and the second-in-command removed their hoods revealing (this should be kinda obvious by now) Twig and Connor, their eyes a murky blue. "We present her to do as you wish with, but she like, isn't a member of our family, so her death would mean nothing."

"Indeed." Widowmaker commented. Slowly picking up a large knife that was left next to the table and looking it over.

"We also found one who will serve you personally until the day you release him. He could be your servant or your husband."

Widowmaker paused when they said that last part and turned confused to them. She was about to speak when she heard a voice echo throughout the halls.

"Twig? Where the hell are you man?! This isn't funny!"

To her shock (and then anger) Mad Dawg walked through doors on the other side of the hall right near the table, wearing his over coat and jeans, he looked around confused, then stopped in shock when he saw Brigitte chained to the table, Twig and Connor in robes, and Widowmaker standing in front of the table with a knife.

"What. The actual. Hell." He said, anger rising. "Twig? What the hell is this bitch doing here?" He demanded, pointing to Amélie.

"Brother Toby, you have been chosen to serve the The Tillbedare av sopor by living with the diosa."

Mad Dawg paused, realizing what was going on his eyes narrowed and he grabbed two pistols in his coat somehow the cult didn't find, whipping them out and opening fire. He wasn't good with them, and Widowmaker dropped to the ground and rolled away. The members of the cult screamed and ran, some of them grabbing weapons and preparing to fight. Mad Dawg grabbed Brigitte's chains and breaking them and pulling her to the ground.

"Are you okay?!" He exclaimed.

"What the hell is going on!?" Brigitte screamed.

"Insane cult! Talon agent! We're gonna die!" Mad Dawg breathed hysterically, unbelieving that his past had _once again_ caught up with him.

 _Uh… real quick, can you help here?!_

 **No. Not really, you're on your for now. The most I can do is this.**

Suddenly, a bag appeared in front of them and Mad Dawg opened it, grabbing his chainsaw and shotgun but then noticed there was armor and a shield and what looked to be a mace in the bag, as well as a camera at the bottom.

"What the hell is this?" He asked over the now flying bullets, picking up the flail.

"That's mine!" Brigitte exclaimed. "How did it get here, and how do you know who Widowmaker is?!"

"Can't talk, gotta fight!" Mad Dawg exclaimed, grabbing the shield and jumping over the table. He stuck his hand into the chainsaw-gauntlet he had been building and it roared to life, charging forward he began wildly slashing at anything in front of him. However, he wasn't trying to kill or even hurt anyone. He was aiming for their guns. Thankfully, this plan sort of worked, and robes and guns were sliced in half. Some unlucky assholes got minor cuts, but right now, it was fight or die.

Suddenly, Brigitte appeared, wearing an yellowish full body armor, she swung her flail around her, knocking several cult members into a wall and knocking a few of them unconscious. At this time, the Talon goons broke through the door and opened fire on Mad Dawg and Brigitte, the former pulled the later under him and too the blunt of the damage to the shield, some of the bullets still hitting him though.

"You're hit!" Brigitte exclaimed.

"Kill… Widowmaker…" Mad Dawg growled back, forcing his healing factor into overtime and expelling the bullets and healing his wounds. He grabbed his shotgun from off his back and began firing, cocking, firing, cocking, firing, cocking and firing again. The goons ducked for cover and two of them were hit directly. One of them die instantly and the other yelling in pain.

"So, you two assholes were in charge of all this?!" Mad Dawg shouted as he jumped off a pew and landed right in front of Twig and Connor, his chainsaw revving to life. "You were working with Talon, and were gonna KILL and innocent woman!? THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"

Twig suddenly, slugged Mad Dawg with surprising force, knocking him back and making him looked up shocked.

"We only want yo make you stronger! To give you a family!" Twig shouted in a booming voice.

"This isn't you Twig! This isn't what your dad would want!"

"We live to serve the Göttin des Mülls!" Connor shouted, lunging forward with a knife. "We, the Tillbedare av sopor, infused with the knowledge of the Blue Star, will die for her!"

" _So that's it… They're all high as hell…" Mad Dawg realized._ Then he realized what they called themselves and what they reffered to Widowmaker as and burst out into uncontrollable laughter. The entire room began to slow down, even the Talon agents stopped shooting in confusion as all eyes turned to Mad Dawg.

"OH, MY GOD! YOU'RE ALL SO FREAKING STUPID!" Mad Dawg laughed uncontrollably, falling onto a pew. "DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU JUST SAID?!"

"N..no…" Twig admitted awkwardly.

"You called Widowmaker the 'Goddess of Waste'! Your cult is called the 'Worshippers of Trash'! And you're all too stupid to know you are literally worshipping garbage! Ahahahaha!"

The whole room went silent, Brigitte tried to laugh but was hit by a Talon goon in response, Twig and Connor looked to one another in shock.

"Like… Is that what we're really called?" Twig finally asked.

"I dunno man…" Connor shook his head.

At this point, Mad Dawg had stopped laughing and saw the Talon agents were all attacking Brigitte, by sheer numbers they were overwhelming her, holding her down as Widowmaker approached with the knife.

"Brigitte!" Mad Dawg shouted, only to be held back by Connor and Twig.

"Let this happen, and you will be with family." Twig stated, only for Mad Dawg to violently punch Twig in the gut with such force that Twig violently vomited, a large stream of chunky blue vomit onto the floor. He then the Connor into a wall and ran forward. Firing his guns wildly, making the agents surprised and pulling Brigitte away into another room and slamming the doors behind her, throwing a smoke bomb behind him as they disappeared.

"Protect the diosa!" A cultist shouted.

Breathing heavily, Mad Dawg looked over to where Brigitte was sitting next to him.

"Are you okay? Were you hurt?" He demanded.

"I'm fine." Brigitte said dismissively. "They want to build their numbers up, I'll break them down!"

 _Wait._

"I know this is a bad time, but I gotta ask. What's your last name?" Mad Dawg suddenly asked.

"What? You're asking this NOW?" Brigitte said in disbelief.

"Yup."

"It's Lindholm." Brigitte said.

"Huh." Mad Dawg said with no emotion, realizing who he was talking to, then began laughing hysterically again.

"Toby! This isn't the time to have a mental breakdown! I know it's scary! But I've faced worse threats with my father in Overwatch and we succeeded! We can succeed here, just trust me!"

"I know!" Mad Dawg shouted. "Your dad and I also faced insane threats in Overwatch!"

"What?" Brigitte said shocked.

"I'm an ex-Overwatch agent! I was friends with your dad Torbjörn! Or at least I was until stuff happened a few months ago…"

" **YOU'RE** the agent they've been looking for over the past few months?!" Brigitte exclaimed in anger. "The one who attacked my friends and accused my father of causing the Omnic Crisis?!"

"I feel like shit about that!" Mad Dawg countered, only for bullets to suddenly tear through the door. Making Mad Dawg and Brigitte drop to the ground and military crawl across the ground.

"You deal with Widowmaker, I'll deal with the others, and I'll explain everything afterwards!" Mad Dawg exclaimed, jumping up and running off, he climbed up a pillar, revved his chainsaw and jumped, he landed in the middle of the crowd, landing on a Talon agent, breaking his back and slashing another one across the chest with the blade.

" _Keep calm… You just gotta fight and survive and…_ " Mad Dawg breathed heavily, fighting, and using the agents as meat shields, doing what he could to keep his beast side down until he growled:

"Screw it!" Slamming his fists onto the ground his bones thickened and his muscled grew sporadically, his teeth grew rapidly into daggers and he roared animalisticly, fur covering his body as he stared down the now terrified cult members (some of whom dropped to their knees and began praying to him) and the Talon agents, one of whom simply said.

"We're screwed."

"If anyone wants to leave, get out now." Mad Dawg growled in his twisted tone. No one reacted, and then one Talon agent raised his hand, and Mad Dawg's head jerked over to him.

"Um… I don't wanna fight you, because… It's clear your stronger… Can I go?" He asked, pointing over his shoulder to the exit.

"Yeah. Go on. I won't kill you." Mad Dawg simply said. As the agent began to run off, a bullet suddenly went through his skull, killing him. Widowmaker looked up from her scope and aimed back to Mad Dawg. Who roared loudly and grabbed one of the agents and used him like a baseball bat as he began wailing away.

At the same time, Brigitte yelled as she swung her flail at Widowmaker, and then raised her shield as Widowmaker fired back with her machine gun attachment. The shield absorbed the bullets and she bashed the sniper with her shield.

"Grand super high awesome chief what do we do!?" A cultist asked desperately, watching the scene unfolding before them.

"We… We…" Twig began, no longer on the effects of the Blue Star and realizing what he had done. "Oh God… what did we do?"

Grabbing another goon, Mad Dad bashed him into a pew, breaking it in half. He then grabbed the splintered remains of the pew and used them like boxing gloves and smashed them into the next group of fools who came near him. The agents all opened fire, but the bullets didn't seem to have any effect.

"I don't want to fight you Amélie! I just wanna be left alone!" Mad Dawg shouted over the fighting. "You already ruined my life! Just leave me alone!"

"You were a mistake freak!" Widowmaker shouted before firing at Mad Dawg with her charged shot, making him roar in pain as the bullet dug into him.

Twig looked over to Widowmaker then over to Mad Dawg and remembered something Mad Dawg had said.

" _It was clear I had no place with them anymore."_

"You ruined… My friend's life…"Twig growled, eyes narrowing dangerously. No longer feeling like his head was in the clouds, he was just violently dragged back to earth. He remembered something his grandfather had told him, that no matter what, Forrest Valley was a place of family and kindness. And this… This was wrong.

"Followers!" Twig shouted, getting the cultists attention. "We have been deceived! She is not the Diosa! Eradicate her!"

The followers seemed confused, but due to the influence of the Blue Star, the opened fire on the Talon Agents. Mad Dawg jumped up from the incoming bullets and held onto the ceiling. A few more of the goons went down, but some of them managed to get down and hide. Mad Dawg knew he had to draw Widowmaker out. He needed to stop this, either by killing Widowmaker, or driving them out.

"Hey Amélie! What's the difference between a bomb that destroys and entire building and a joke?!" He shouted into the hall. "Gérard can't take a joke!"

Widowmaker was fuming now. She aimed her gun around the hall, but couldn't see Mad Dawg anywhere.

"I don't think you had to kill him, you and Talon could've pointed a knife at him and his French instincts would've made him surrender instantly! Hoh hoh hoh!" Mad Dawg added with a mocking laugh.

Widowmaker kept looking around the room, getting more and more angry, the reprogramming failing. Suddenly, Mad Dawg appeared behind her and bit down on her shoulder, she screamed in pain and grabbed a venom mine, except the weight of Mad Dawg snapped the cord she was hanging off of. The two hit the ground and Mad Dawg threw her against a wall, and Brigitte smashed into her with her shield. She swung the flail and knocked her back to the ground. Suddenly, A Talon agent threw a flashbang directly into Mad Dawg's face, making him yell in anger, rubbing his eyes. In the ensuing chaos, the Agent grabbed Widowmaker and the two took off with the surviving agents.

Mad Dawg breathed heavily, looking around the room at the carnage. There were some dead Talon agents and a few injured cultists, and finally he turned around and looked at the shocked and terrified Brigitte.

"You okay?" He finally asked.

"What… What are… you…" She stammered fearfully.

"Holy crap dude…" Twig said, eyes going huge when he finally saw the beast that Mad dawg could become. Suddenly, Mad Dawg launched himself overtop of Twig and landed in front of him. Grabbing him and snarling loudly in front of the entire room on the makeshift stage.

"Give me one good goddamned reason not to rip your throat out." He demanded.

"I…I… I don't have one." Twig shook his head. "Toby… I'm so sorry. We all tried a little bit of the Blue Star… and then we couldn't stop. One day we found a overturned truck and a bunch of weapons. We took them so the cops wouldn't show up and we didn't know what to do with them. One night… Me and the others were tripping when we got a message from those guys… In the tripped-out state… we agreed to help them. And our addiction just got worse. I'm so sorry. I didn't realize what we were doing…"

"You think that's a good enough excuse!?" Mad Dawg snapped. "You think after all the pain you've caused people you can just apologize and move on!? You think…" His voice trailed off as he realized how much of himself he saw in Twig.

"Connor… If I die… I want you to go to my room… And delete my internet history." Twig instructed as the others watched in shock as it seemed like Twig was about to be snapped like… well, like a twig. "Then you can have the double stuffed Oreos I have under the bed…"

"YOU ASSHOLE! YOU SAID WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY!" Mad Dawg shouted. His mouth opening wide as he yelled, Twig seeing the insanely large teeth in his mouth.

"Stop!"

Mad Dawg and Twig turned and looked over to Brigitte.

"Let him go." Brigitte said. "If you are the agent who disappeared a few months ago, the one named 'Mad Dog' the one thing I always heard about you was that above all you cared for people. You made mistakes but you always fought for what was right. I understand your angry, and so am I, but if you kill this man, you'll be no better than him. I don't know if you can even understand me, but wasn't Twig your friend? I get your upset, but if you want him to face justice, this isn't the right way to do it."

Mad Dawg looked to Brigitte, then to Twig, then back to Brigitte, then back to Twig. Finally, after a few tense moments, he lowered his head and sighed.

"If we take him to jail… this place will close." He began. "Twig… Is not a bad person. But he needs help, the help that this place was built to give. Omnics and Humans can enjoy this placer, and if he's gone… all that will be gone." As he continued talking, his body slowly shrank, the fun receded and his voice raised noticeably. "What is did is inexcusable, but everyone deserves a second chance. If they waste that, then that's different." Mad Dawg paused and looked at Twig. "Every Blue Star, you destroy them. Get these people medical help, but above all. Never speak a word about this."

"y..yes.. Of course!" Twig stammered.

"Good." Mad Dawg stated. "Then let's deal with this crap."

The next day, Mad Dawg sighed deeply before walking over to where Brigitte was packing an RV.

"Hey." He awkwardly said.

"Hey." She replied, stopping and turning to him.

"I'm sorry." Mad Dawg simply said. "I didn't know what they were planning. And I didn't know you were an Overwatch agent."

"Well, I've been studying abroad for the past nine months or so." Brigitte commented, giving a slight shrug. "Also, I should thank you. What you did was unbelievable."

"Unbelievably stupid?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Unbelievably brave!" Brigitte retorted. "You fought through Talon agents, one of their best assassins and an entire cult just to try and save me! You didn't even know I was an Overwatch agent!"

"Well, that and I didn't want to be Widow's bedmate." Mad Dawg muttered.

"So now what?" She asked. "I can give you a lift back."

"Back where?"

"To the base." She stated. "I'm sure the others would be thrilled to see you from what I've heard. And I'm sure they'd listen if you wanted to explain what's been happening for the past while."

"did you hear what I said last night?" Mad Dawg sighed. "I burned though my second, third, fourth, up to sixty-ninth chance! There's no going back for me now."

There was a sad silence until Brigitte spoke up again.

"Well, maybe you just need to grow up." She simply said as she got into the RV. "I'll see you around."

Mad Dawg nodded and began walking away, another bridge burned to ashes. After the big fight, Mad dawg was able to explain it to the non-cult people and Omnics staying in Forrest Valley that he was here filming a movie, and thankfully they bought it. Tossing his bag over the seat, Mad Dawg sat down on the motorcycle Twig had left him. When he sat down it was kind of low, but Mad Dawg liked this style of cycle. Revving the engine, he carefully made his way onto the actual road, and drove off. Not saying goodbye to anyone, just moving on with the next huge mistake waiting to happen that he called his life.

 _(Cue David Hidalgo & Los Refugio Tiernos song 'Nunca')_

After about an hour of driving, Mad Dawg sat at a red light on the outskirts of deadlock gorge. He wasn't sure where he was going long-term, but right now he wanted to put distance between himself and the world. As he sat silently, about a dozen men on motorcycles pulled up around him. One of them at the front raised his glasses when he saw the saddened look on Mad Dawg's face and spoke up.

"Ay, ese. You good?" He asked.

Mad Dawg glanced over and muttered. "Yeah."

The man paused, thinking for a moment, having seen the broken ness in his eyes and finally said. "Go home kid. Whatever pain you're going through. It won't begin to heal until to want it to. And if you go this way, you're asking for more pain."

Mad Dawg was about to flip the man off, but he paused, thinking the words over, and frowned, angered. But not with the man. Not with Brigitte, not with 76, hell. Not even with Virus.

With himself.

" _Maybe it's time to grow up."_ Went through his mind.

As the engine roared to life, Mad Dawg looked up with determination and a goal in his mind tearing off, leaving skid marks on the ground, Mad Dawg pulled a U-Turn at the empty intersection and tore off down the road.

"Yo, Alverez." One of the men spoke up. "We gonna go?"

"Yeah, yeah. We'll go." Alverez smirked, looking over his shoulder at the retreating Mad Dawg. "That one's for you Jax." He muttered under his breath patting a picture in his jacket of him and his family as he and his men rode off.

Mad Dawg drove down the empty road in silence, no thoughts in his mind, no jokes on his tongue. He stopped at another light and saw Good Boy and Bad Dawg standing under the light post.

"I've made my choice. I'm done with you two." He simply stated as he tore off again, leaving a smiling Good Boy and an angered Bad Dawg to disappear into the cloud of dust he made as he drove off.

Brigitte quietly drove back towards the Gibraltar watchpoint, saddened at how things had turned out. Also relieved that she wasn't sacrificed by a bunch of crazy, drugged up junkies, but that was beside the point. She came to a stop at an intersection and sighed deeply, only to hear something knocking on her window. Rolling it down she was surprised to see Mad Daeg sitting on a mototrcycle next to her.

"Maybe it's time to grow up." He simply said, and Brigitte smiled.

"Need a lift?" She asked.

 **A.N. Done. Finally.**

 **I'm gonna level with you, I always had this idea for this chapter arc, but I don't think it came out exactly how I wanted it. Again, mostly with the idea of the Cult's origin and motivation being underdeveloped, literally because I made it this chapter. I liked the idea, but hey, do what you can. Now that it's over though… Things are going to get interesting. And I need your help.**

 **Do you think Mad Dawg deserves a second chance? Do you think the Overwatch agents will give him a second chance?**

 **How do you think the agents will react to his return? And most of all… His origin?**

 **Leave your answers in the reviews and they may shape the next few chapters!**

 **Now? I need a break… I'm gonna go play some more Sonic Mania.**

 **Oh, one last thing, Talon: A Dawg's Tale and Zyon's Legacy will be on hold until the next two-three chapters are done.**

 **See you then.**


	36. Mending Fences Part I

Winston was busy working away on the technology behind Tracer's chronal accelerator, there wasn't anything _wrong_ with it, but that didn't mean there couldn't be improvements made. Perhaps he could make it smaller, more convenient for Lena to wear, possibly it could be altered so the cooldown would happen faster, allowing her to 'blink' more frequently. It most likely wasn't possible to ever return Lena to how she was before the accident, but what kind of scientist would he be if he didn't try? Re-adjusting his glasses, he activated the test run for his current modifications, these would allow Tracer to possibly freeze time for a few moments. The accelerator sparked and the computers recorded the input, but eventually it fizzled out and hissed. Winston frowned and began to set things up for the next experiment none the less, not entirely sure where he went wrong. Finally, he decided to take a break and sat down in his tire swing and began peeling a banana.

"Winston, it appears Brigitte has returned." Athena stated over the PA system in his lab.

"Oh good, does she seem well?" Winston asked.

"Well… yes. And Mad Dawg appears to be with her."

Winston paused, banana half-way into his mouth, shocked at the fact that Mad Dawg was… well, even found. Let along here.

"Are you sure?" He asked, picking up a tablet and looking at the security feed, and true to her word, Brigitte and Mad Dawg were walking up the path to the main door. "It can't be!"

"Shall I alert the other agents?" Athena asked.

"No! Uh, sorry. Ahem." Winston exclaimed then collected himself. "I'll go see what this is all about, please refrain from alerting the other agents just yet."

"Of course, Winston." Athena replied.

Winston began making his way to the main door, wondering what could've caused Mad Dawg to return, and determined to get to the bottom of what caused him to leave.

 _Outside…_

"You ready?" Brigitte asked.

"Yup! I'm ready to go home!" Mad Dawg said and began walking away, only for Brigitte to grab his shoulder and drag him back. He shook his head and exclaimed nervously; "Nope! Can't do it!"

"Why?" Brigitte asked. "You were so empowered earlier."

It had taken the duo about two days of driving (with a few breaks for naps and food) to drive back to the base, and Mad Dawg had been honest. He told Brigitte almost everything. The truth behind his origins, what caused him to leave, he skipped out on a few details as to what happened while he was hunting Virus (namely working with Sombra and a few other things) and above all, what happened between him and the agents. Brigitte was shocked, maddened, saddened and yet filled with an odd sense of hope. She believed they'd be willing to listen to Mad Dawg, and let him explain what happened, but now, all that courage was gone.

Mad Dawg was now standing in front of Brigitte, with his back to the door, and didn't notice that they had opened and Winston was standing in the door way.

"Yeah, but that was before I got here. In all honesty, I'm freaking scared, I don't want to face everyone! What am I supposed to say?! They trusted me and I destroyed that trust! They were the kindest people they could be and I rejected all that! Now I'm supposed to walk up to Winston and try to explain everything?!"

"Hello Mad Dawg." Winston said, standing in the doorway.

"Hey Winston." Mad Dawg said over his shoulder. "As I was saying, Winston himself will be an issue because he's pretty much the father figure to the team! There was a time I'm take a shotgun shell to the face for him! He always listened and knew what to say to almost any problem. But after what I said and did, I can't just…" His voice trailed off when he realized who was behind him. "Crap." Slowly he turned around to face the space primate. "Hey Winston."

"What are you doing here?!" Winston asked, shocked and delighted at the same time.

"Well, I, uh… I'm…" Mad Dawg sighed and looked down at the ground, then back up. "I'm here to apologize. I want to explain what's happened to you and the others."

"Well of course!" Winston said. "Why didn't you come back sooner? We'd always be willing to try and help in any way we could!"

"You don't get it Winston…" Mad Dawg shook his head, his eyes tearing up. "The things I did… The people I've hurt… I'm a monster…" Mad Dawg looked down and began silently crying. Winston looked shocked to Brigitte who nodded, as if saying that this was to be expected, and he did his best to console Mad Dawg.

"I don't know what you've done. But I can't be that bad." Winston reasoned, trying to cheer him up.

"Look, Winston, can you gather uh, Mercy, Ana, You, and Morrison? The others don't know I'm back yet, and I want to keep it that way for now. At least, until I explain things to them first." Mad Dawg said, wiping the tears form his eyes.

"Of course." Winston nodded.

Mercy and Ana were talking in the mess hall when their communication devices went off simultaneously, the two medics looked at them slightly puzzled but saw it was from Winston and got up to go see what he needed. At the same time, Solider: 76 had just finished some training exercises when his device began beeping in his jacket. Wiping sweat from his forehead he looked at the message and shrugged before throwing his jacket on and left the gym, heading to one of the offices.

"So, what's this all about Winston?" Ana asked, taking a seat next to Mercy.

"I'll tell you once- Oh good, he's here." Winston said as he saw Solider: 76 enter and take a seat at the table. "Well, I'll let him explain."

With that, the doors opened and Mad Dawg quietly walked into the room, his hands in his pockets and not looking directly at anyone. Mercy gasped audibly, Ana raised her hand to her mouth, and Solider 76's eyes widened.

"Hey." Mad Dawg said timidly.

"Y..You're alive?" Ana stuttered.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Where were you?!" Mercy exclaimed, practically jumping out of her chair and rushing over to him and hugging him. "We've been looking all over for you! Are you alright?"

"Numbani, Oasis, Orkney, Colorado, Japan…" Mad Dawg listed off a few locations. "and to answer your question, sit down and I'll explain."

"You've got a lot of nerve coming here kid." Solider 76 said, his eyes narrowing dangerously, making Mercy give him an angered glance. "You better have a damn good reason for coming here."

"Yeah. I know, and I wouldn't be here without a genuine reason." Mad Dawg replied, his voice quiet and sad.

"So? Why are you here?"

Mad Dawg looked down, rubbing the back of his neck. Unsure of where to start of what he should say. Finally, he looked up and spoke;

"I wanted to apologize, for everything." Was all he said. No life in his voice, but fear and pain was very clear in his voice. "I… I want to give you the truth. About everything that's been happening the past few months and things that happened long before that." He said, taking a seat with Mercy taking a seat next to him. He bit his cheek before deciding on where to begin.

"I want to begin by apologizing for everything I've put you guys through. I made a lot of mistakes, and I believed that I was beyond redemption for the things I did, the thing... I am."

"What are you talking about?" Ana asked, hurt and puzzled by Mad Dawg's reasoning for staying so far away.

"Okay, let's me ask this: how much do you guys know?" Mad Dawg asked, looking around and dreading the answer.

"Not much." Solider 76's unchanging tone remained the same as he looked directly at him. "We know you killed Hakim, we know you were seen with Reaper and Sombra, we know you attacked Genji and Zarya in Numbani, and we know you murdered Virus. But your reasons for those are unknown."

"So, none of you know I'm a Talon-created genetically mutated life form who was designed to be a killing machine?" Mad Dawg asked warily, deciding to get the biggest bombshell out of the way. And it was **HUGE**. All four agents seemed genuinely shocked beyond words, as if they had just been told that… Well, that one of their agents wasn't technically a human, and was made by Talon. Mercy's face seemed saddened, as if her worst fear was just confirmed. Winston's jaw seemed to drop to the floor, Ana looked terrified and 76 just seemed to furrow his brow, making his reaction harder to understand than anyone else's.

"What do you mean?" Winston finally asked.

"That's what Beta-576 was." Mad Dawg said, sliding the folder across the table. "That's what… I was."

Casting a glance over to Mercy, Winston thought it over. In a way it made sense, his healing ability, natural strength and fighting ability, none of it seemed natural. So, if he WAS genetically programmed to have these abilities, it would explain a lot. But, if that WAS true, why did he have free will? Why not force him to be a servant of Talon?

"Beta-576 originally was supposed to be a cure, the plan was to create a living organism with natural immunities to most deadly diseases, but… Things changed. In the end, I was the result from their plan to create a genetically enhanced life form, one that was human in almost every way, but was stronger, faster, and deadlier."

"From that, they created you." Winston stated, shock, fear and sadness in his voice.

"Yeah. I was made by Dr. O'Deorain, Dr. Baja, and Dr. Ziegler."

The room went silent again, all eyes turned to Mercy whose eyes were welling up with fear and guilt until Winston spoke up again.

"So… near that old mansion, when you attacked Mercy…"

"I had just met Jax, he warned me and I quote 'Not to trust the medic, she did this to you, M-'." Mad Dawg explained. "Then when Mercy said 'Beta-576', I assumed that the loss of memories, the mutations, it was all her doing. At the time, Jax, McCree, and I were the only ones I thought would've known about it."

"You met Jax? How is he?" Mercy asked, briefly getting off track, but the question made Mad Dawg look away sadly.

"He's dead." He simply said, making Mercy gasp again and her eyes widen and water.

"No…" She mumbled, not wanting to believe it.

"The old house was full of Junkers." Mad Dawg began explaining what happened. "He was so badly stabbed and beaten that he was practically mummified with bandages. I tried to help him, but a Junker shot him through the head. I may have decapitated that Junker in response and ran for it."

"And at the old apartment building in King's Row." Solider 76 said, putting it all together. "You had just found out about all this."

"Yeah, and Virus wanted me dead."

"Why?" Solider 76 asked, still trying to figure that out himself.

"Because… Because…" Mad Dawg stammered before breaking down and crying. It took everyone present aback until Mad Dawg finally managed to say: "Because I caused the Omnic Blackout… and killed his family."

Once again, it went so silent you could hear a feather drop. The four agents looked shocked and terrified in disbelief at Mad Dawg, not sure what to say.

"It happened years and years ago… I was nine or ten I think… I was with some old frie- um… people I used to know. We found out that the power plant was screwing low-income people out of power. I tried to restore it… but when I reconnected the power wires, I didn't notice that there were power dampeners, and I pulled them all out at once. When the power hit, the surge went off the charts." Mad Dawg paused for breath, tears still flowing down his face freely. "Virus' sister was in the hospital, she was on support or suicide watch or something… When the blackout hit, no one knows what happened. But she died. He spent nearly the next decade hunting for whoever did it. And eventually found out it was me."

"My God…" Winston finally spoke up, shocked to his core by all this.

Mad Dawg didn't speak for another few minutes, everyone just sat silently. Finally, Mad Dawg shook his head and continued.

"So, a few months ago, Virus hired some freelancers to try and draw me out. They kidnapped McCree and sent me on a wild chase. There was something in my mind, something about the term 'Beta-576' that wouldn't go away. I needed answers but I also was afraid of dragging you guys into this."

"Why?" Ana finally asked. "You know we'd do whatever we could to help you, no matter what the issue was."

"In about thirty seconds you're gonna change your mind." Mad Dawg flatly stated, then added. "The main reason why I wanted to go at this alone was because I believed this was my issue, my life, my problem. I didn't want to bother you all with it. Also, Virus kidnapped McCree to get to me, if you were working with me, what's to stop him from targeting someone you cared for? Hell, even working with _Sombra_ I nearly got an eleven-year-old-child drilled through the skull!"

"I'm sorry… what?" Winston finally asked after finding his voice.

"Right…" Mad Dawg muttered, remembering he needed to explain that. "So, I wanted to kinda drop of the map after I was done, or at least I figured out what was going on. Anyhow, I broke _back_ into Talon's base in Dorado-" 

"WHY!?" Solider: 76 shouted, suddenly cutting Mad Dawg off, surprising everyone.

"Yeah, Morrison, I'm sorry, that plan wasn't too well thought out. My reason I guess was that's where it all started, and I wanted to remove all traces of me from their systems. But after I finished there, Sombra… well. She drugged me and took me to her hideout, where I woke up chained upside-down." Ana and Mercy stared shocked at that last fact and Mad Dawg held his hands up. " _NOT LIKE THAT_." He added.

"I cut my chest open-" He continued but sighed when he saw Mercy's face. "Let me explain. I wired my heart earlier on so if it stopped it would detonate a bomb and destroy her servers, so she agreed to help me find Virus. Partially because of the leverage I had and partially because apparently, they worked together until Virus screwed her over and some other things happening. Anyhow she has this little girl she's friends with, or maybe related to, I dunno. But Virus found out and kidnapped her and shoved her in this cage that had drills attached that would kill her unless I gave a set amount of blood."

"W..what happened?" Mercy stammered.

"What do you think?" Mad Dawg replied. "I sliced my gut open and bled. Enough people already died because of me, I didn't need more."

"And this girl?" Ana finally asked.

"She's safe. She's far away from all this." Mad Dawg stated, knowing that Alejandra was safe.

"Alright, that's good to know. Now I have a few questions for you." Solider: 76 spoke up again, having been oddly quiet the entire time.

"Fire away."

"First of all, that building we found you in, the one where you seemed incredibly unhinged. What was it?"

"It… Oh god…" Mad Dawg began, the fear creeping up his spine at the memory of the twisted things Virus had set up for him.

"It's alright dear. You don't have to answer if you don't want to." Mercy said reassuringly, but Mad Dawg just shook his head.

"No. No more secrets." He grit his teeth and began to explain. "Virus wanted me to remember what I had done. So, he set up mannequins, pyro effects, machines, and the manequins, well, they were being stabbed, burned, ripped apart, electrocuted, crushed by debris… He wanted me to remember what I had done. To watch my pain. He left newspapers of the days that followed what I had done, played screams of pain throughout the building. He even hung a mannequin that was meant to be his sister in the middle of a room while tvs played the report from way back when it happened." Mad Dawg stopped for a moment, and turned when he heard what sounded like someone retching and looked over to Winston who looked like he was about to throw up. "You alright dude?"

"No." Winston honestly answered. "How could anyone… be so cruel?"

"Back when you caused the, um. 'Incident'." Ana began, timidly not wanting to refer to it as what it was. "How old were you?"

"Nineish, I don't remember to well. I just remember the after math, the taste of the metal in my mouth…" Mad Dawg stopped when he realized what he had said. "I don't wanna talk about it."

"Alright. I understand." Solider: 76 nodded, his tone much calmer, more caring, as if realizing his anger had been for not. "So, what happened to Virus?"

"Well, Sombra and I went on a road trip looking for him. After the crap in King's Row, I went to what used to be a secret hideout I had. After I rescued McCree before this all started, I took him there. Needless to say, things were… awkward."

"I'd say that was an understatement."

"Yeah, it totally was." Mad Dawg said with a tired laugh. "Anyhow, Roadhog and Junkrat got hold of one of my transporters and showed up as well. I was thankful for that, because Virus hired the Junkers to come get us. We fought, and you know the aftermath of it all."

"Yes." Winston nodded. "You did all that?"

"I blew the Train Yard to the sky out of desperation. If I died, Sombra would be tortured and executed for my device frying her stuff, and I didn't want _her_ death on my mind just yet. The death of the Junker Queen and the others? I could live with that. After they threatened to do some… really disturbing things…" He grimaced, remembering the Queen's dying words (which do to common decency we omitted, but you can imagine it probably.)

"Where do Reaper and McCree fit into all this?" Morrison finally asked another question, thinking over everything Mad Dawg explained. Jack couldn't explain why, but he didn't feel like Mad Dawg was lying. Most likely he wasn't. after all, why would he?

"Well, Reaper obviously came after Sombra, and when he found out what I had done, he had no choice but to stay on the sidelines until after the Junker attack. I realized that this was getting worse, so I ripped the device out from my chest. Then it turned out Virus was pulling the strings on everyone. He used a Talon IP to hire the Junkers to come after us, and was planning on blaming you guys for the Omnic Blackout." Answering the question that he knew was coming, he added. "I don't know how or why."

"So, what happened?" Ana prodded, wanting to know how far this mess went.

"Sombra decided to stay and help me find Virus. She turned her back on Talon for a time while we hunted for him. In the end, I fought my way through a giant underground maze until I was trapped. I honestly thought I was gonna die, mercs and Talon agents were everywhere. But at the last second McCree and Reaper showed up and saved my ass."

The four in the room looked surprised at one another and then back to Mad Dawg. That's what McCree refused to talk about?! How much did he know!?

"Before you ask, McCree knew I was looking for something called 'Beta-576', and he knew I was blackmailing Sombra into helping me, but that was it. I don't know how he found where we were, or what Reaper was doing there." He stopped and looked at Mercy before stating:

"What do you remember from when you made me?"

"N..not much…" Mercy stammered, feeling faint at the thought of something she did becoming so… tortured. "I left when Moira said she wanted to 'strengthen' you. It was inhuman what she wanted to do. Before I left, I was informed that the proje- that you were dead."

"Hm." Mad Dawg nodded. "Whatever she did… There's something inside me. An animal. It's like Winston's primal rage, but I have no control, it's like I transform into a beast…"

"Transform? How so?" Winston asked.

"My bones twist and break, fur grows everywhere, my teeth fall out and are replaced with what look like knives. It hurts like hell, and something happens to my mind, like a mix of testosterone, dopamine and anger all injected throughout my entire body, and I lost control."

"How long did it last?"

"Well, when it happened in Virus' funhouse it was about eight minutes, when it happened in Forrest Valley, it was only about four minutes, and I had more control."

"What happened in Forrest Valley?" Mercy asked.

"I'll get to that later." Mad Dawg said getting back on track. "We got separated, and I finally met up with Virus." As he said that, the colour in his face drained, and fear seemed to be taking over. Mercy placed her hand on his back and looked concerned at him. "I'm sorry… I don't like talking about it."

Mad Dawg took a moment to try and collect himself. The other agents were nervous now. Mad Dawg wasn't typically scared of much, or he didn't let it show. So, whatever had happened must've hurt him badly. Finally, he looked back up and continued his explanation: "He tracked down the families of the people and Omnics I had hurt, and trapped me in a room, he gave them an ultimatum. Turn off the screen and let me live, or keep watching and watch me die."

"That heartless bastard…" Mercy scowled, genuinely angry.

"Who? Me or Virus?" Mad Dawg muttered, and was then shocked when Mercy slapped him.

"Don't you **DARE** talk like that!" She exclaimed. "You didn't know what you were doing! You were trying to help people!"

"And now they're _dead_ because of me!" Mad Dawg shouted back, louder and angrier than he wanted to. "They were people with families! With husbands and wives! With children! I'm just some basterdized science freak show experiment who can't die even by goddamn cyanide and carbon monoxide!"

There was a shocked silence until Ana spoke up again, her voice shaking.

"He… tried to poison you?"

"Yeah, a few people shut off their screens but most didn't. And I don't blame them." Mad Dawg sighed, sitting down again. "The toxins did some real bad damage and I honestly thought I was going to die, but he shut them off so he could gloat at my corpse. The asshole didn't bother to double tap. So, I set fire to his face, melted his mask onto his face… The ripped it off and snapped his neck." Mad Dawg felt like crying, like angry tears should be flowing down his face, but nothing came. "After all he did, all the crap he put me through, put those families through, forcing them to relive their pain… I couldn't justify letting that bastard live."

Once again, there was that damned silence Mad Dawg was growing to loathe and fear. He felt for sure like that was it, they'd never forgive him for what he'd done. And the one-man Mad Dawg didn't want to speak spoke up.

"I don't blame you."

"…what?"

"Mad Dawg, when we first found you, you tried to warn us." Jack began. "You tried to tell us that when push came to shove, you would shove a lot harder than others. I don't like what you did, but I don't blame you for it. This man tortured you, mentally and psychologically broke you, forced you to cross all the lines you ever drew. If anyone else here went through all that, I can't say for sure any of us wouldn't've pulled the trigger as well."

Mad Dawg didn't reply, but nodded and everyone knew that it spoke a thousand words.

"After Virus was, ahem, 'dealt with'." Winston said in his awkward way. "Where did you go after?"

"Well, I moved to Numbani. Turned out Virus had stolen a ton of files and info from Talon, again, all part of his weird plan. Because I stopped him, Doomfist offered to let me join, I told him no and we struck a deal. So long as Talon didn't do anything illegal in Numbani, they'd never see me again. He was fine with that, as he believed I wasn't a big enough threat to need to be killed, but also not insignificant enough to be ignored. Ultimately, this cease fire was the best for both sides."

"You tried to make peace with _TALON?_ " Solider: 76 said in disbelief, his eyebrows raising in surprise.

"Yeah, I tried to end the crap between Overwatch and Talon, but they weren't gonna go for that." Mad Dawg sighed. "But since I believed you'd all have me executed for what I did." He continued shooting a quick glance over to Morrison. "I wanted to lay low, go somewhere where you wouldn't find me but I also didn't want to be a criminal."

"Well, we didn't travel to Numbani much because apparently there was some new vigilante there, the 'Fiery Phoenix' or something like that." Winston commented.

Mad Dawg looked away and mumbled. "Crimson Phoenix."

"Wait, how do you…" Winston began asking but trailed off when he realized what Mad Dawg was silently saying.

"Yeah. That was me." He mumbled, blushing slightly with a smile. "Um. I felt bad not doing things to help people. But with the deal with Doomfist, I figured there wasn't much I could do. The costume was me getting ready for this year's Twisted Metal festival and I had Torbjörn's old wingsuit backpack. One night while I was out, I stopped a mugging, then a robbery, and just some small petty crimes. The city caught on though, and I feel really bad for just leaving like I did…"

"Well you did attack some of your own friends and run from them." Ana commented.

"I'll be honest, I didn't know Zyon was an agent." Mad Dawg shook his head.

"Well, like you, he had 'retired'." Mercy explained. "However, his father was taken by Talon and he called us to help him. After we saved him, he agreed to return to join up again."

"Oh. I feel like crap now…" Mad Dawg muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

"So, what made you want to return now?" Winston asked.

"A few things. First of all, I'm tired of lying. The red tape surrounding my life was choking me. Second, I met Brigitte at Forrest Valley, and had no idea she was an agent, in the end we became friends and I had to save her from a cult of drugged up hippies who thought Widowmaker was some sort of eternal Goddess." When he saw the shocked and confused looks surrounding him he simply added: "Don't ask. I'll explain later."

"Any other reason?" Morrison asked, sensing there was something else, a bigger reason.

"Yeah, the day before we ran into each other in Numbani, I had the worst experience of my life. I'll admit what I did was stupid, but it also kinda had to be done, either for closure, or to try and build some ground work."

"What did you do?" Mercy finally asked.

Mad Dawg sighed before looking back up: "Just hear me out here okay?"

 **SEVERAL MONTHS AGO…**

Walking through a rather long and large hall, Mad Dawg awkwardly made his way through the sea of teenagers and Omnics who surrounded him, each of them having a place to go to, leaving Mad Dawg the odd one out. He looked at the scrap of paper, then back around him, totally lost. Meanwhile. Moira was silently working on a formula on the board, her mind shifting through the different outtakes or altercations that this could lead to. Classes were dismissed for the day and she wanted to try and complete this new hypothesis so she could progress her research over the course of the next few days, possibly discover something new. However, all thoughts of advancement and scientific progress came to a screeching halt when she heard a voice.

"Can you believe this place?"

Turning confused, she was puzzled, annoyed and somewhat disgusted when she saw Mad Dawg at the back of the room, wearing torn jeans shorts and a t-shirt with a hoodie around his waist, looking at a fruit cup.

"They charge you eight freakin' dollars for mostly ice and strawberries! Strawberries! They're the worst out of ANY form of fruit collection… Am I the only one who thinks that?"

"I wouldn't disagree with you." Moira commented in her dry tone. "I'm personally not fond of strawberries."

"I know, right? The seeds are the worst part." Mad Dawg muttered.

"What are you doing here?" Moira suddenly cut him off.

"What? Oh, right. I'm thinking about getting some more education, so I figured I'd see what the schools have to offer. The Hanamura University has a great athletics program, Numbani College has a decent-looking shop class, I mean, I could re-learn some of the basics to wielding…"

"I'm surprised you even went to school." Moira curtly cut him off.

"Meh, I didn't, but you gotta start somewhere." Mad Dawg shrugged, tossing the plastic cup over his shoulder and into a nearby recycling bin.

"Once again, why are you here?" Moira repeated herself, a little more cross this time. She wasn't working with Talon currently, and none of the agents were nearby, and it was obvious without her weapons she wouldn't stand a chance against this mutant freak, but why would he come here so carelessly? Last time she checked, they had a tentative 'peace' with him.

"Akande told me I could find you here." Mad Dawg honestly answered. "I was wondering if we could talk."

 _Damn you Akande._ She internally cursed.

"About what?" She asked, doing her best to hide her disgust.

"Take a wild guess." Mad Dawg rolled his eyes. "I had some questions, and I figured you would be the best person to ask them too, and something tells me you have some questions you wouldn't mind asking me as well."

Moira paused for a moment, thinking about it. If she was serious, she wanted to ask Mad Dawg some questions, but she also wanted to tear him apart. She had always assumed he'd never just show himself in a place where they could talk. But from the looks of it, he was unarmed.

"So, it's true. You _are_ Beta-576." She finally stated.

"The one the only." Mad Dawg said with a mocking bow.

"If you'd be so kind, please follow me." She said as she walked towards her office with an air of dignity and pride. Mad Dawg cracked his jaw to one side and followed her, glancing over at the board as he followed her. The two left the large classroom and walked down a hall, Mad Dawg looking at the pictures and paintings which lined the hall.

"Oasis University is one of the most prestigious universities on the planet." Moira spoke up, not looking back at Mad Dawg as she walked. "It is known for producing some of the most profound leads in scientific fields that have ever been known."

"From what I've heard, your one of the more intelligent profs here." Mad Dawg replied, not mockingly, almost in respect. "Countless papers written and published, dozens of hypotheses' proposed and studied, PhD's, Doctorates, PhZ's, MD's, PhE's, most people can't even count all the degrees... Stuff most people can't even dream of achieving. According to some of the students this whole place seems to be built on your achievements."

Moira couldn't help but smirk slightly as a feeling of pride flowed through her body. She refused to show it, let alone acknowledge it. But the mutant's words felt… good. Finally, the two walked through a large wooden door into an office, Moira sat down in her chair and Mad Dawg sat across from her.

"Well?" She asked with a raised brow. "What's this all about?"

"Why'd you do it? What was your goal?" Mad Dawg asked, jumping straight into his questions.

"Excuse me?"

"You know what I'm talking about." Mad Dawg said flatly.

"Well, originally you were meant to be a living cure, with the modifications made to your genetic structure from such a young age, we wanted to make a cure for illnesses. Even if we couldn't eradicate virus' from the body, with the advanced cell reproduction, it would've been possible to simply have healthy cells attack bacteria to speed along the healing progress."

"How noble." Mad Dawg sarcastically replied.

"You weren't meant to be human." Moira suddenly shot back. "You were meant to be a cure, not a human. For some reason, the cells inside you accelerated so quickly they built a body for you."

"Did you intend for that to happen?" Mad Dawg asked.

"No. But sometimes things don't go as planned." Moira shook her head. "However, with your new body… complications arose."

"You mean people didn't like you cutting me open and trying to turn me into a weapon?"

"You seem to know a lot about what you're here to ask me about." Moira flatly said.

"I saw a few of your vlogs in one of Virus' shacks, the one where Ziegler was begging you not to do something to me… Also, that was another one of my questions, why did Angela leave?"

"Dr. Ziegler… objected to some ideas I proposed over the course of over time working together. Dr. Baja was very neutral, seeing how my ideas were beneficial, some of the time. He was always a little… off. But he did his job well. However, I haven't heard from him in some time now."

"He's dead." Mad Dawg said sadly, and Moira's face changed to genuine shock.

"Excuse me?" She finally asked.

"When I began this quest to figure out what Beta-576 I wound up in this old mansion that the Junkers were squatting in. They were hired by this asshat named Virus to try and get to me. They tracked down Jax and took him. When I found him, her couldn't move his legs or his left arm. His left eye was nearly out and he seemed… burned. As he was giving me some info, a Junker shot him clean through the skull. I made the Junker pay."

"Did… did he saw anything?" Moira asked.

"Yeah, don't trust the medic, she did this to you. Moira." Mad Dawg practically spat.

"That… is troubling. I was unaware of that." Moira said, seeming saddened. "He was a good man and a great scientist."

"Yeah, from what I read he seemed like a great guy." Mad Dawg nodded in agreement, not feeling like throwing another insult right now. "So… Why'd you change? Y'know… Talon and all that?"

"The progress we were making was impressive, but restrictions were beginning to pile up." Moira began. "Since you were, for lack of a better term, 'human'. The experiments were considered _inhuman_. That was a contributing factor to Angela's departure, she didn't like that we were experimenting on a 'child'. Eventually I was approached by some people who worked for Talon, and they offered me what I wanted, a place to continue my experiments, but with no restrictions, no laws, just the limits of humanity which I aimed to re-write. They offered me funding and everything I'd ever need. Jackson and I agreed it was a worthwhile deal."

"Wait, wait, wait." Mad Dawg said, cutting Moira off. "Jax was PART of this?!"

"Indeed, Jackson believed that the breakthroughs we'd make would balance out the moral grey area we'd be working in. However, he never knew of the price we paid." Moira paused, as if debating if she wanted to tell Mad Dawg this. "In exchange for everything we'd need, they wanted a living weapon. A creature with advance combat knowledge and problem-solving skills, ine which could survive events or accidents that humans could not, and if possible, one that would be able to repair it's won body and adapt to most circumstances."

"So, you scrapped the cure… because of money?" Mad Dawg asked bewildered. "Instead of… y'know, selling said cure and being richer than you ever could have imagined?"

"This was never about money." Moira scoffed. "I wanted to expand how we saw the world, re-write the laws of the human body, evolve us to our next step, make us stronger."

"And how does making me into a werewolf accomplish that?" Mad Dawg retorted, cutting Moira's high-and-mighty feel down.

"Excuse me?" She asked.

Mad Dawg took something out from his jacket, it was a picture of him in his beast form in Virus' death maze.

"Was that meant to happen?" He asked.

"No…" Moira said, her eyes widening in amazement. "I didn't think that was possible…Those implants…"

"Look, I ain't gonna waste our time making you explain how it all works, the important thing is that it does."

"Now that I've answered your questions, I hope you'd be so kind as to answer a few of mine." Moira said, shaking her surprise off.

"Go ahead, I'll try and be honest." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Why did you wait so long to try and figure out where your abilities came from?" Moira asked.

"Well, I didn't know what Beta-576 was up until a few months ago. Before then, I had no memories of anything from before when I was seven or eight. As for my healing factor, I just sorta accepted that it was part of who I was. I assumed I was born with it."

"Well, I might be able to explain your memory loss." Moira replied. "When you were young, and the… 'Beast Protocol' as Jax called it, you went berserk. Someone didn't restrain you properly and…" She motioned to the right side of her face and Mad Dawg tried not to laugh.

"Crap. I did that?" He said in disbelief.

"Yes. You did." Moira said with bitterness clear. "You then ran through the lab and smashed headfirst through a window. You then fell three hundred feet into a canyon and we never found your body."

"Hm… that seems like something I'd do…" Mad Dawg muttered.

"I hope that clarifies your confusion, and now my only other question is a simple one. I'd ask why you refused joining us, but you have your reasons, believing that Overwatch at one point was your 'family'." She explained waving her hand dismissively. "My question is, why are you _really_ here?"

"I… I wanted to figure out some more about who I am, what I am." Mad Dawg replied.

"No, there's something else." Moira shook her head. "What is it?"

"I…" Mad Dawg began but sighed. "I wanted to figure out what this all means for you and I."

"Oh? And what do you mean by that?" Moira asked with a mirthful smile, leaning forward on her desk.

"I dunno. You created me, but we're constantly fighting and…"

"I'm sorry. Are you under the impression that since I created you I have some connection to you? Like I'm your mother?" She said nearly laughing. She reached out and lifted his head up so he was looking at her. "You mean _nothing_ to me. You were just an experiment, and a failed one at that. Now, you're an annoyance at best and nothing to me at worst."

Moira enjoyed the broken look in Mad Dawg's eyes, while his face didn't show much other than 'deep thought' she knew she had _broken_ him, and she felt like that was good enough. If she was honest, she was surprised how honest she'd been with him and vice versa. But now, this time for pleasantries was over. Mad Dawg seemed to know this as he nodded and got up.

"Thanks for your time." He nodded as he walked to the door, when he got to it he stopped. "Oh, uh… You're gonna wanna get the janitor to clean out the toilet in the teacher lounge. I doubler dickered that thing _HARD_." He said before slipping out and closing the door.

 **PRESENT DAY…**

It was quiet after Mad Dawg finished, Solider: 76 just sat there in disbelief, Winston was pissed, Ana was shocked and Mercy finally broke down and began crying. Mad dawg slowly turned to her, feeling like he did something wrong.

"Angela?" He quietly asked.

"I'm so sorry!" She cried. "I had no idea what they were doing… I should've done more to help you… I should've stayed and fought to save you…"

"Don't give me that shit." Mad Dawg sighed, rubbing his face. 76, Ana, Winston and Mercy stared in shock at Mad Dawg's response.

"Excuse me?"

"It. Wasn't. You're. Fault." Mad Dawg said, emphasizing each word. "You didn't know." Upon seeing Mercy's multi-emotional-displaying face, he decided to explain. "You had no idea what they were truly doing. You thought they were making a cure, not a weapon. Don't EVER think for one second that any of the blood I've shed is on your hands. It's not. When you found out the truth, you couldn't _do_ anything at that point. You jumping ship and trying to help those affected by the shit-show science fair from hell was the right thing to do. Sitting here and blaming yourself for mistakes you didn't make won't help anyone, let alone yourself! Believe me, I know when you need to blame yourself for something, and this ain't one of those times."

After finishing, Mad Dawg noticed the shocked faces from the other agents sitting around the table. Mercy wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled slightly.

"Thank you, Mad Dawg." She whispered.

Mad Dawg turned back to the others then finally asked. "Now what?"

"I'm unsure." Winston shrugged. "At this point, we believed the next time we'd see you would be in the middle of a firefight or behind bars."

"I'm tired of running." Mad Dawg shook his head. "It's doing more damage than Talon ever did, and it's hurting the people I cared for." He paused then added. "And I know this might come across as 'Oh, he's been rejected by the woman who created him, and now he's on the rebound'. But it's not." He looked directly at Jack and continued. "You gave me a chance to be better, to be something else than a monster, and I blew it. Even if you want me gone for good after this, I'll understand. I just wanted to say… I'm sorry. Truly I am."

The four-remained silent, unsure of what to say, but finally Solider: 76 spoke up.

"That dosen't change what you did." He simply said, and the other three agents glared angrily at him. "But it does change where we go from here. As it stands, we'll need to figure out how to move forward from the Omnic Crisis-"

"Wait. 'We'?" Mad Dawg cut him off confused.

"Yeah, there's no way in hell you're doing this alone. It'd be wrong to leave you to deal with this on your own."

"Yeah, I think you might be able to think of something better than my plan of blaming you guys for what I did."

"Okay." Morrison said flatly. "I take back what I said, get the hell out."

"Fine! I will!" Mad Dawg said in an angered tone as he got up and began to leave before sitting back down.

"For now, though, you're more than welcome to stay here. And I think there's some people who would be really happy to know your alive." Winston commented.

"Yeah…" Mad Dawg sighed with a slight smile. "This should be fun."

Opening the door and stepping outside, Mad Dawg looked around before randomly shouting as loudly as he could:

" **MAD DAWG'S BACK BABY!"**

…only for Tracer to appear literally out of _nowhere_ and tackled him to the ground in a hug.

"So, you think the other's will be willing to listen to him?" Ana asked, looking over to Jack.

"Yeah, if they don't kill him first." Solider: 76 said with a chuckle.

 **A.N. Done. Finally. I know this was a very talkative chapter (the next few will be as well, I'm sorry,) but I wanted to get back on track. Mad Dawg's finally home. But will everyone be as forgiving as the leaders? What about Dedsec? What about Torbjörn and Mei? Well, if you think you know what's gonna happen or have suggestions, leave a review! Thanks to everyone whose been following and favouriting, it means a lot to see those notifications. Hopefully the next chapter will be up soon.**


	37. Mending Fences Part II

**Be warned. There's a lot of manly tears in this scene. Like, A LOT. Some may say it's an emotional manipulation ploy, but… I think it's realistic.**

Mad Dawg didn't have time to brace for impact as the hyper-active pilot flew in from nowhere and tackled him to the ground in a hug. The wind was knocked completely out of MD, leaving him dazed and confused as Tracer relentlessly hugged him.

"I _KNEW_ YOU WERE ALRIGHT!" She exclaimed loudly, her cheek pressed up against his. "ARE YOU ALRIGHT LOVE? PLEASE TELL ME YOU'RE STAYING!"

"Can't… breathe…" He wheezed audibly. Tracer realized this and loosened her grip slightly, but still refusing to let go fully. "Yeah. I'm not going anywhere Lena." Mad Dawg said with a smile, only to be pulled into another tight hug.

"My god… We were so worried…" Jumping to her feet, Tracer dragged Mad Dawg down the hall towards the main hall. Mad Dawg didn't bother trying to fight it. He wanted to meet everyone again, and he figured this was probably the best way to do it.

"Tracer wait!" Mad Dawg said, slowing the Brit down until they stopped in a hall, she turned to face him and saw the nervous look on his face. "Before we go in… I just wanted to say… to say…" Mad Dawg trailed off before sighing. "Screw it." He suddenly hugged Tracer and she smiled widely and hugged him back.

"I'm sorry." Was all he said.

"For what love?" Tracer asked, genuinely unsure of how to reply.

"I'll explain later. I'm just gonna be apologizing a _lot_ over the next few chapters…" Mad Dawg muttered as he opened the door. He was hoping to see Lúcio, McCree, Junkrat, Reinhardt, maybe Symmetra, or D Va.

However, when the doors opened, he saw Hanzo, Bastion, Zarya, Orisa and Zenyatta in the room. Hanzo was practicing some stances, Zarya was reading, Bastion and Orisa were 'talking' and Zenyatta turned to the sound of the opening door.

"Mad Dawg. I was not expecting to see you." The monk commented aloud.

"Hey Zen." Mad Dawg meekly said, and immediately the entire room went dead quiet, everyone turning in shock to see Mad Dawg awkwardly walking into the room. Normally he didn't mind people looking at him, but here, it felt off.

"Breee?" Bastion whirred, his head tilted to the side.

"Hey Bastion." Mad Dawg said giving a slight wave to the Omnic. "I'm… I'm back."

"It has been nearly seven months since you were last seen Mad Dawg." Orisa suddenly said, stating the statistics that made everything a whole lot harder. "You have been branded a rouge agent or a deserter, both of which could lead to a prison sentence of-"

"Orisa, this is not the time or place for that." Hanzo suddenly spoke up, cutting the Omnic off. His furrowed brow went from the Omnic, to the mutant. "I believe Mad Dawg has something he wants to say."

"I'm sorry." Mad Dawg said. "I put my own goals in front of the team, and you suffered the aftermath of those actions, I also lied to you, in what I believed was an attempt to protect you and those you cared for from my mistakes. I'm not here to act like nothing happened, but I want to explain what happened."

"To that, I have no objections." Zarya commented, giving a slightly angry glance, still remembering the events in Numbani.

"MAD DAWG! YOU'VE RETURNED!" Came an overly zealous German voice as Reinhardt practically rocket-charged into the room and gave Mad Dawg a crushing hug. At this point, Mad Dawg was thankful for his healing factor, but knew he was gonna have to go to a chiropractor soon to get his back fixed.

"Hey Reinhardt." Max Dawg said with a smile. "How's life?"

"Bah! Why would you ask me that?!" The knight exclaimed, still holding Mad Dawg out in front of him. "Where were you!? We searched all around the world for you! They claim you were in Numbani but you fled when you saw them!"

"That's why I'm here." Mad Dawg sighed. "I wanna explain everything to everyone, but first I need to apologize to some people." After a moment, he added. "By the way, could you please put me down?"

Setting him back on his feet, Mad Dawg looked to the ground, rubbing the back of his neck before turning around to face the Russian bodybuilder.

"Zarya, I'm sorry for what I did to you in Numbani. I was scared… and there was a bunch of crap going on… And… I wasn't thinking straight."

"You usually aren't." Zarya commented dryly. "But you ran from us months ago without explanation and then attacked us when we found you. We didn't come with intentions to hurt you, we just wanted to know what happened."

"I know. And I swear I'll explain." Mad Dawg replied. "I'm sorry."

Zarya thought it over then nodded.

"So? What is it you want to explain?"

"Not right now." Mad Dawg shook his head. "There's some people I need to apologize to first. Later tonight I'll explain everything."

As Mad Dawg began to walk to the door, Hanzo looked over to Reinhardt. Something that the archer had to admit he appreciated about the old solider is that he was adept at reading people's eyes. He could see their true intentions in them.

"Do you believe him?" He asked.

"Yes." The German nodded. "His eyes were pure, whatever is on his heart, he wants to do what it takes to lighten it. This will not be easy, but I believe he wants to do right by us, and shockingly… he dosen't expect us to do right by him."

Walking alone down the hall, Mad dawg sighed when he got to one door in particular. He paused and then knocked on it.

"Coming." Came a female voice.

Mad Dawg fidgeted on his spot awkwardly, feeling like a small child who-

 _Can you lighten up already?!_

Dawg. You got yourself into this, you lie in this bed.

 _Pretty sure you messed up those phrases…_

We'll burn that bridge when we get to it.

Mad Dawg rolled his eyes as the door opened and Symmetra gave a slight gasp in surprise.

"Hello Ms. Vaswani." Mad Dawg said politely, not sure how to address her.

"Mad Dawg? I thought you were dead!" Symmetra said, trying to hide her shock.

"Well, I'm not." Mad Dawg replied with a slight shrug, saying it more sarcastically than he meant to. "Listen, I'm here to apologize for the stuff that happened a few months back. I'm here to explain to everyone what's been going on and to answer some questions most of you have, so… later on if you want, we're gonna meet in the lounge and I'll try and clear some things up."

"Of course, Kace." She nodded, and Mad Dawg froze when he heard the name. "I'll be there."

"K..Kace?" He stammered.

"Yes, your friends from I believe it was Dead Sec were here a week or two ago. I spent some time with Josh, he was quite talented. But he claimed that was your real name."

Only now did Satya see that Mad Dawg was almost snow white. He was rooted to the spot, all the colour and life drained from him. He didn't speak, he didn't blink. Satya almost found it humorous if it didn't startle her so much.

"Are you alright Mad Dawg?" She finally asked.

"Ffffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-"

Meanwhile, McCree took a long drag off of his cigar and exhaled as he cracked his neck. It had taken a lot of coaxing, some threats from Sitara, and a very passionate friendship speech that had caused several of the elite guards to break down crying and hugging each other from Marcus, but Wrench had finally agreed to return with the other hackers to see if Mad Dawg was alive. He didn't like it, he didn't even believe he _was_ alive, but he was still going back with them. Now, they were staying at a new member of Dedsec's house until they could figure out where Mad Dawg might be. And they were doing…

Nothing.

"So, do you have any ideas where he might be?" Marcus asked, looking at some of the pictures they had gotten on his phone.

"Not really." McCree shook his head. "If he wasn't hanging out with us, Mad Dawg just sorta did his own thing. He usually hung out around the base, or just went for runs."

"That sounds nothing like Kace." Sitara mused. "He rarely left the hackerspace, and if he did, he never left alone, he was too scared to go on his own."

"Are we thinking of the same person?" McCree asked. "The Mad Dawg I know jumps off of rooftops just for laughs."

"Hopefully he lands on his friggin' face…" Wrench muttered, only for McCree to scowl and throw a bottle at him. Wrench ducked and turned in anger, flipping him off.

"Piss off!" The anarchist shouted.

"Then lay the hell off! That kid's gone through more crap than you could ever imagine! And even if you did go through what he did, he didn't walk away trying to look like some cyberpunk prostitute!"

"Y'know what? I've had it with you." Wrench scowled, his mask emoting anger. "You show up to my place where I have a pretty damn good thing going, and you drag me off because some asshole I haven't spoken to or give a shit about in nearly ten years is supposedly alive?! Then we let you crash with us and you try and tell us how to treat they guy who sold us out and nearly _KILLED US!?"_

"Well maybe if you didn't SHOOT HIM IN THE HEAD he wouldn't not want to talk with you!"

"Oh why do you two go and suck each other's di-"

"WRENCH!" Sitara shouted, breaking the two up. "That's ENOUGH!"

The cowboy and the demolitionist glared hatefully at each other, both breathing angrily until McCree's communication device began to beep. Answering it he growled:

"Yeah?"

"Hi Jesse."

McCree's cigar fell out if his mouth as he tried to stammer out a reply, finally getting out:

"Mad Dawg?"

The hackers in the hackerspace went quiet, Sitara tapping into McCree's phone or comm device and sending it to the Dedsec channel, listening in on the conversation.

"Kid? Is that you?"

"Hey McCree." Mad Dawg said, his voice almost squeaking, as if he was in the midst of crying. "It's been awhile, hasn't it?"

"Holy sh-, Dawg, where were you!" McCree exclaimed, slightly angered. "After that crap with Virus you just dropped off the map! I thought you were dead!"

"I know! And I'm sorry!" Mad Dawg returned. "I shouldn't have done that to you… and… I screwed up bad… and there's so much I need to explain. I should've called you months ago… But I wanted to tell you I'm alive, I'm back. I'm at Gibraltar now. I'm gonna explain everything to everyone tonight, if you can… please come."

"What time?" McCree asked, much calmer.

"High Noon."

"Oh… Oh… You _asshole_." McCree said, his voice getting louder. "How DARE you." But it was clear his tone was mocking more than anything.

Mad Dawg laughed and Sitara smiled at the sound of her old friends laugh. Marcus was about to say something, but T-Bone put his hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Um, one other thing." Mad Dawg said after a few more moments of laughter. "Listen, I heard some people I used to know were brought in to try and find me…"

"Dedsec?" McCree commented, casting a glance around the room to him. Marcus singled he wanted to talk, but McCree shook his head, his face clearly saying _not the time_. Marcus frowned but nodded, understanding why he thought that.

"Y..yeah." Mad Dawg shakily answered, clearly a mixture of scared, remorseful, and broken. "You met them?"

McCree looked over to the hackers and nodded. "Yeah, I met them. They're nice."

"…how are they?" Mad Dawg asked after a few moments of silence, his voice starting to crack a little.

"Well… they didn't admit to it, but it's clear they miss you. Especially the leader, she seemed shook that you were even alive. I guess I know how that feels now…" McCree chuckled the last part.

"Sitara? Geez… What the hell am I gonna say?" Mad Dawg mumbled, the last part much more to himself.

"Hello? I'm alive? Any of those sound like they'd work?" McCree snarked, and T-Bone stifled a laugh. However, Mad Dawg just remained silent, finally he spoke up again.

"I don't know if you know where they are… But if you do. Please let me know tonight. I've got so much I need to say, especially to them. They were my friends… They were my family… and I hurt them. I hurt them man… Just like I hurt you guys…" After that, Mad Dawg broke down crying.

Sitara's eyes were filling up with tears as she heard Mad Dawg breaking down, Marcus felt rocked to his core, T-Bone remained silent, Josh bit his lip and Wrench felt terrible. Hearing his old teammate cry like this… He couldn't remain mad at him. Not after all they had before the incident. That mattered more damn it!

"Hey, hey kid." McCree said calmly. "It's alright. We'll figure this out. I'll see you tonight."

Hanging up McCree sighed, feeling oddly relieved as he turned to the hackers.

"Shit dude…" Wrench muttered sadly.

Mad Dawg didn't want to enter the door he was standing in front of. He knew this _wasn't_ going to be easy, or fun. But he also knew he had no choice. Sooner or later, he was going to have to talk with this particular agent. He thought about how he should handle this.

 _Flowers? No. Chocolate? No, that's a dumb idea…_

Finally, Mad Dawg mustered up enough strength to walk into another lab and look around for someone. Finally, Dawg saw Mei writing on a chalkboard, thinking some things over.

"Um… Hello…" Mad Dawg said in the most awkward way he possibly could, and the eco scientist paused and turned around.

"Oh. You." She said flatly, her face showing no emotion. Snowball beeping somewhat angered. "You're alive."

"Yeah, I am." Mad Dawg timidly answered. "Listen, can I talk to you?"

"About what?"

 _Damn… that's cold._ Mad Dawg thought. _Still, she has every right to be angry with me._

What were you expecting? Her to say _ice_ to see yo-

 _Finish that sentence and I'll make Skorch make you suffer._

"I… I said some things, and…."

"You're sorry?" Mei cut him off. "Even if you are, it dosen't change what you said."

"I know." Mad Dawg sadly nodded.

"Do you?" Mei asked crossly. "It sure seemed like you didn't. Not to mention that you decided to leave us to join with Talon, and now that you're back you can just… apologize and think things will go back to normal?"

"Mei. I don't _deserve_ your forgiveness." Mad Dawg bluntly stated. "Nothing I can ever say or do would earn that but… If this is it, this is where I leave and don't return, I wanted to let you hear form me that I was sorry."

"Mad Dawg. What you said wasn't _human._ " Mei continued, her tone as cold as Moira's. But to Mad Dawg, this hurt so much more.

"I'm not human." Mad Dawg quietly replied.

"What?" Mei asked, confused by his response.

"I'm… I'm a mutant." Mad Dawg quietly answered. "Built in a tube and-"

"Why didn't you stay there?" Mei snapped. "Or were you too busy watching someone die?" Mad Dawg was taken aback by Mei's anger, but he also didn't blame her. "Do you know what it's like?! To wake up and everyone you cared for is dead! To have to watch them die knowing there wasn't anything you could do?! DO YOU?!"

"YES!" Mad Dawg finally shouted. "GOD ALMIGHTY YES! I KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO WATCH PEOPLE DIE BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT I WAS BUILT FOR! I WAS BUILT TO _KILL_ PEOPLE!"

"And whose fault is that?!" Mei continued, clearly not realizing what Mad Dawg had just said. "Maybe if your parents gave an ounce about you, you wouldn't have turned out this way! You could've learned about this thing we humans call love!"

"I NEVER LEARNED WHAT LOVE IS LIKE BECAUSE NO ONE EVER WANTED ME!" Mad Dawg exploded. "HOW MANY PEOPLE DO YOU THINK WANTED A DEMON CHILD THAT MAY HAVE BEEN BUILT IN A LAB BY TALON?! NO ONE! **I! HAVE! NO ONE**!"

Mei paused, shocked at Mad Dawg's outburst, and he wasn't finished.

"I LIVED ON THE STREETS! IN A DAMN JUNKYARD! AN ABANODENED TRAIN YARD! UNDERNEATH A CHINESE RESTURAUNT! UP UNTIL I MET DEDSEC, I HAD **NO ONE!** Families tried to take me in, places tried to fine me a home, but none of them wanted… whatever the hell I am…" Mad Dawg finished, seeming much sadder. "They didn't want a monster…"

There was a silence so cold even Mei felt frozen.

"I had no one until I met you guys." Mad Dawg continued, now clearly fall apart at the seams again. "After I burned the bridges with Dedsec, I was all alone. Sure, I was happy with it, I could live life how I wanted to, I learned how to take care of myself. I wasn't rich or famous, but I didn't need to be. I was… happy. But when I was saved by you guys… Everything made sense again. I didn't feel out of place, I felt like for once I could actually do something good! I wanted to help people. And then when I found out about what I was… I knew I was going to lose it all, I figured it would be better for you to believe I had a change of heart than to find out what really happened." Mad Dawg paused, then shook his head. "It was the stupidest choice I've ever made. Mei… I'm sorry… I don't know what it's like to lose your friends like that. Truly, I don't. Nothing I can say can make that better. I was in the wrong, and I don't deserve a second chance, but you deserved the truth." After finishing, Mad Dawg simply turned to leave and began to walk way. Knowing there wasn't anything left to say. However, he stopped when someone grabbed his hand. Looking over his shoulder, Mei pulled him into and embrace, giving him a warm smile.

"I forgive you." She said kindly.

"What?! Why!?" Mad Dawg asked, surprised.

"Because, we've both been through something terrible. And if we keep fighting each other, we'll never be able to move on. Also, I believe you, you _do_ mean what you say." She explained, and after a few moments of confusion, Mad Dawg hugged her back.

"I'm sorry… If I could take it back I would… I-"

"Dawg." Mei cut him off. "What you said has been said, there's nothing you can do to go back and change that. What matters now is you do what you can to move forward. You're on the right path.

Mad Dawg nodded and smiled, Snowball chirped happily and landed on his head, seeming happy once again.

"Who else is here?" Mad Dawg asked, feeling a bit relieved. "I haven't seen Lúcio since I got back. Is he around here?"

"No. He's been working on his music for a while. Last message we got said he'd be back soon, but he didn't say when." Mei shook her head. "He also said he knows you stole the bases stash of Lucio-Oh's."

"First of all, not apologizing. Second, who's here?"

"Well, Winston, Ana, Solider: 76 and Mercy were meeting about something…"

"That was me." Mad Dawg answered, looking down and raising his hand.

"Zarya and some of the others were in the lounge last I saw…" Mei continued.

"Already said hi to them." Mad dawg said, looking up and rubbing the back of his neck.

"Hana was streaming I think, Tracer was doing something, and the others I don't know." Mei concluded.

"Well… Might as well go see Hana." Mad Dawg shrugged. "Can't tell if she'll hug me or throttle me. Then there's Pharah… Man, I have no idea how's she gonna react…"

"Speak truthfully, they'll listen."

Mad Dawg smiled at Mei, before finally saying: "Thanks."

And with that, Mad Dawg slipped out into the hall, setting out to find another teammate to reconcile with.

Hana was currently in the middle of a StarCraft session and she was _FOCUSED._ She had spent weeks building the perfect team and climbing the ranks until she was near the top. If she could defeat this player, the leaderboard would be hers. Eye eyes narrowed as she furiously deployed her squad to surround the enemy base, only for them to launch a counter-attack, her eyes widening in shock as her troops were destroyed.

"How's it going?" Mad Dawg asked, leaning into the room.

"I'm trying to win here but this one player keeps taking me down!" D Va scowled annoyed.

"Is it the Legend27?" Mad Dawg asked, a cheeky smile on his face.

"The Legend27? D Va asked, somehow oblivious to the fact that Mad Dawg was standing behind her.

"Yeah, apparently he's this mutant. And he has a strange ability to heal from almost any injury." Mad Dawg began. "And he rolled with a legendary crew of gamers, however, he decided he wanted to roll solo and broke up the team without telling the others, and he really hurt their feelings… and he's sorry, and he wants to make amends."

D Va (who had lost the game) whirled around in her chair, shocked when she realized who was talking, and her eyes went comically wide and they seemed to sparkle like an anime character when Mad Dawg smiled down at her.

"No… You… But… You're alive?!" She squeaked.

"Sup?" He said with a smile. Hana jumped up and (like most of the women) hugged him happily.

"You're back!" She exclaimed.

"Only briefly. I'm going to jail after tonight." Mad Dawg lied, and Hana's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What?" She growled.

"Yeah, I'm going to prison. Might be sentenced to death." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Still, can't say I don't deserve it, after all the terrible things I've done, what good am I to the tea-"

Only now did Mad Dawg see Hana was gone, her chair spinning. He paused mid-word and looked around.

"Hana? Hana?" He asked, looking around the room. "Crap…"

"So. Do you think everyone will listen to him?" Ana asked, looking over the notes they had from Mad Dawg back when he joined the team.

"I can't say for sure." Solider: 76 shook his head. "I can hope for the best, but we still need to figure out where we go from here." He finished, looking to Mercy, who rubbed her arm awkwardly. Before anyone could speak, D Va stormed into the room.

" _ **HOW DARE YOU!**_ _ **"**_ She screamed with a ferocity only seen when Mad Dawg spawn killed her in a multiplayer game, or when she came second place in a battle royal game. _**"AFTER ALL HE DID. YOU WANT TO THROW HIM IN**_ _ **JAIL!?**_ "

The four agents finally recovered from the assault on their ears and looked to one another, clearly confused.

"What?" 76 finally asked.

"YOU WANT TO SEND MAD DAWG TO JAIL AFTER EVERYTHING HE DID FOR US!" Hana continued her rant.

"Hana-"

"HE FOUGHT FOR US WITHOUT QUESTION! WITHOUT REASON!"

"Hana-"

"SURE, HE MADE MISTAKES, BUT YOU SHOULDN'T CRUCIFY HIM FOR THAT!"

"Hana. I have no idea what you're talking about." Jack calmly stated, making the irate gamer calm down.

"What?"

"Hana! For crap's sake, I was JOKING!" Mad Dawg's voiced called from outside in the hall. Only for another voice to start shouting.

"What the- Mad Dawg?! Your back mate!" Junkrat's insane voice yelled.

"Damn right!"

"Oi this is amazin'! Let's blow something up!"

"Hell yeah! Demo-Bros for life!"

The agents looked to the door then to one another.

"I'll deal with them." Ana commented and walked towards the door, trying to stop a massive explosion from happening.

"So… what now?" Winston asked.

 _Later that night…_

All the agents had gathered in the lounge, some of them knowing Mad Dawg had returned, and some of them still unaware, albeit due to their communication devices being off, them training, or them sleeping through them. The Dedsec crew was also present, and currently were talking with a few of the agents. Things were… uncertain to say the least, but uncertainty turned to joy and shock as the doors opened and Mad Dawg quietly walked into the room, the conversations gradually (or instantaneously) dying off.

"Hey." Was all he said.

And there was no response.

"Holy crap…" T-Bone finally spoke up, more shocked than when he found out the truth about Default.

"Um… I'm alive… And I'm back. So, hi." He began, not having prepared anything. "It's good to see you all again." He paused before deciding to jump right into it. "Listen, I screwed up. I lied to you all… I hurt you, some more than others…"

"Damn right!" Wrench shouted from the back, and once again, Mad Dawg seemed to turn ghost-white.

"Wh...who said that?" He stammered nervously.

"Back here!"

Wrench leaned out from behind Roadhog. "You were expecting McCree, but it was me Wrench!" he shouted loudly.

"I…I… I can't… I'm sorry… I can't do this!" Mad Dawg suddenly exclaimed, clearly terrified, and disappeared from the spot he was standing on, completely vanishing. There was another moment of shock, but then the agents turned to Wrench.

"Good going." Roadhog simply stated, clearly annoyed, and the agents all departed to try and find the mutant. Wrench stood there, not having expected that reaction (let alone Mad Dawg being alive) until Sitara hit him in the back of the head.

"Dumbass." She scowled.

Mad Dawg re-appeared on the bridge between the two buildings, breathing erratically. His heart was beating insanely fast, finally. Mad Dawg fell to his knees and vomited profusely. He paused, fighting back tears, and felt a little more vomit coming up. After he was done, Mad Dawg fell onto his face, too scared to move for the first time in his life.

"I can't do this…" He mumbled.

"Hey kid. You alright?"

Casting a glance over his shoulder, Mad Dawg saw McCree walking onto the bridge.

"Damn… what happened to you Dawg?" He asked.

"Jesse!" Mad Dawg said, stumbling up but suddenly feeling weak and falling forward, McCree catching him. "God man… I'm so sorry!"

"Kid, clam down. It's gonna be okay." McCree said reassuringly.

Sitting down next to Mad Dawg, the two sat on the bridge, feet hanging off the side, neither one saying anything.

"Are you okay kid?" McCree asked.

"No." Mad Dawg shook his head. "I can't face them. Not after what I did."

"Who? The agents, or Marcus and his friends."

"Dedsec." Mad Dawg practically whimpered.

"Geez kid, I ain't ever seen you like this." McCree honestly spoke, scratching his head slightly. "This' really got you torn up… Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Yes! No! Damn it… I do, but I don't know if I can." Mad Dawg growled, pulling at his (now much longer than normal) hair. "I want to, but I can't."

"Sure, you can." McCree shrugged. "You were gonna talk to us, what makes them any different?"

"I don't know…" Mad Dawg mumbled.

"You don't have to do it all at once, but sooner or later, you'll have to." McCree stated, taking a drag off his cigar before handing it to Mad Dawg, who also took a drag off of it. "They're good people. They miss you. We went on a trip to Junkertown to find Wrench… The dude's king now by the way."

Mad Dawg just laughed, it wasn't a loud or long one, but it was still a laugh.

"Honestly, I'm not even shocked." Mad Dawg shook his head with a smile. "Aye… I honestly thought he'd marry the queen one day…"

"I do _not_ need those images in my brain." McCree stated bluntly.

"Heh… yeah." Mad Dawg sighed. "Alright. This chapter's titles _Mending Fences_? Well, might as well get some duct tape and get fixin'."

With that, Mad Dawg stood up and walked back to the main building. After a few minutes of looking in empty rooms, Mad Dawg saw Josh looking at a map of the base, probably trying to figure out where he would've gone off to.

"Hey, HawtSauce!" Mad Dawg called, and Josh turned to stare in mute shock as Mad Dawg approached.

"Y..your alive." Josh finally managed to say.

"Yeah."

"How?" The hacker immediately jumped to the questions, not thinking about much else.

"I'll explain in a minute, where are the others?" He said, looking around.

Josh didn't speak, but led him down a hall to where Marcus, Wrench, Sitara and T-Bone were talking.

"Hey guys." Mad Dawg said quietly.

The hackers turned to him and there was a sort of stare down, no one moving. Then Sitara slowly walked forward.

"Mad Dawg?" She said quietly.

"Hi Sitara." Mad Dawg smiled.

Sitara didn't reply, but simply hugged him tightly. Refusing to let go.

"Ohmygodwherewereyou?" She said quickly, her voice quiet but her feelings loud. "Y'know what? I don't care. You're alive, now _please. Tell us what happened._ "

"Whoa, hold on there Sitara." Marcus said, getting her attention. "There's something else we need to clear up first." He then suddenly joined the hug. "It's been too long kid. I'm so happy you're safe."

T-Bone watched the younger hackers hug it out before muttering "Screw it." And joining the hug himself. "It's good to see you kid."

After they were done hugging, Mad Dawg sighed and looked down.

"I'm… so sorry…" Mad Dawg finally began, tears filling his eyes. Again.

"Kid. What the hell is wrong with you?" Marcus suddenly asked. "After EVERYTHING we went through, you think _any_ kind of mistake would mean you didn't have a place with us? After EVERYTHING we went through, you just, disappear? Thinking we're never gonna talk to you again? That we don't want to see you again?" Marcus paused and hugged Mad Dawg again. "Do you know what it was like?! Thinking you were dead?! Thinking that the last we ever saw of you was the worst day in our damn lives?! Do you know how god AWFUL that felt?!"

Marcus stopped when he heard Mad Dawg freely crying, and the hacker's eyes softened, realizing how bad that sounded.

"Hey, buddy… I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." He said, trying to console his friend.

"No. You're right." Mad Dawg replied through his tears. "It's my fault. All of this."

Marcus didn't reply, he just kept hugging the (now much older) member of Dedsec. He remembered how much this seemed like the first time they met Mad Dawg. He just breathed, oddly peacefully.

"It's alright Dawg. It's gonna be alright."

Finally, the two let go and Mad Dawg looked over to T-Bone, still not feeling much better.

"C'mon kid." T-Bone simply said in disbelief. "You _really_ think we'd hate you?"

"I'm sorry."

"Stop. Kid, stop apologizing." T-Bone suddenly ordered. "We all made mistakes. What matters now is we move on. Also, I want my jacket back."

"Yeah…" Mad Dawg agreed, now finally looking to Wrench. Whose mask emoted its basic emotion, making it hard to gauge what he was thinking. Wrench stepped forward…

And slapped Mad Dawg.

"THAT'S for what you did to Daisy." He stated.

 _Slap!_

"THAT'S for the pain you put us all though when we thought you were dead!"

 _Slap!_

"THAT'S because you stabbed us in the back!"

"Wrench!" Sitara shouted angrily. Trying to get him to stop.

"No Sitara! This is far overdue!" Wrench retorted. "AND THIS… Is because you thought after ALL we did together, that we never wanted to see you again!"

Mad Dawg quietly stood there, not moving, waiting to be slapped again. Only to feel Wrench's spikes on his jacket pressing against his jacket. Opening his eyes, he saw Wrench now hugging him.

"Damn it Thunder Lizard McGiantcock… I'm so sorry… I shouldn't have done what I did… I didn't mean to hurt you. I, well, I was angry. And I wasn't thinking straight."

"Reginald. If you agree to move on, I'll forgive you." Mad Dawg answered with a mischievous smile.

"…I'm gonna shoot you in the balls." Wrench simply replied.

"I love you too."

Finally, he turned to Sitara, who simply smiled at him.

"You've really grown up, haven't you Kace?"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded.

"I think you've figured this by now, but it's amazing to know you're okay." She smiled. "I think you need to explain some things to everyone though."

"Yup."

"C'mon kid." Sitara said, leading Mad Dawg back to the others. "Let's find out what this was all about.

About ten minutes later, everyone was back in the room. Confused and ready for some answers, and Mad Dawg knew he was gonna give them what they wanted. Taking a quick drink, he cracked his neck and began.

"I'm sorry." He simply said. "And I'm gonna say that a _lot_ tonight. What I did was stupid, I was scared about the aftermath of my past actions that I didn't think about the consequences of the actions I was taking currently. Things got weird… and then they got bad… and I'm just gonna start at the beginning." Sighing he thought it over then said aloud. "Beta-576, is me."

There were some confused murmurs throughout the crowd (save for those that already knew where he was going) and Mad Dawg explained.

"It shouldn't be a shock to anyone here, but I'm not human. Technically speaking, I'm not even a mutant, I'm a living weapon."

" _This is gonna SUCK."_ He thought, knowing what he had to say next.

"One… one that was made by Talon."

After a few minutes of shocked and angered yells, Mad Dawg finally spoke up once again after the agents seemed to calm down.

"I know you're angry. I don't blame you." He continued. "I only found out a few months ago, up until then, I had no memories of where I came from, or where I got my powers."

"That's true." T-Bone spoke up. "When we found him, he had a hole in the side of his head and no idea who he was. He didn't even have a name at that point."

"So, a few months ago, I saw this message saying 'Beta-576' and that dug up some memories I didn't know I had…"

As the night went on, Mad Dawg explained _everything_. Virus, blackmailing Sombra, Jax, Mercy and Moira's involvement, the freak show in King's Row, running off to live in Numbani, the deal with Doomfist, he only left out the Forrest Valley incident and his meeting with Moira at Oasis. There was anger, shock, terror, tears, confusion, sadness, it was a mess. Mad Dawg couldn't tell if the agents understood him or wanted him dead. It was clear some of them were angry at Virus, some were angry at Wrench, Wrench was angry at himself, T-Bone seemed like he had seen this all before, and some were mad at Dawg. Finally, after it was all over, everyone just sat and thought the same thing.

What now?

"So. That's the truth." Mad Dawg exhaled, feeling tired, but also knowing this had to be done. "Anyone, uh… got any questions?"

"Why lie to us?" Genji spoke up. "With what you were going through, did you think we wouldn't help?"

"It had nothing to do with you guys not helping, it's because helping would put you all in danger." Mad Dawg replied, knowing that wasn't a satisfactory answer he decided to explain himself. "Virus was friggin' nuts. He kidnapped McCree just to try and draw me out. He _knew_ where to find Jesse, and he may have known who you all were." Seeing some agent's faces light up with realization, he continued. "McCree and me-"

"It's McCree and _I_!" Sitara shouted from the back.

"McCree and _me_ don't have much in terms of 'family'." Mad Dawg said, casting a glace over to Mercy. "We get taken or killed, the world moves on."

"Whoa, now hold on a sec!" McCree interrupted.

"Jesse, before you speak, what's your relationship with your family currently like?" Mad Dawg flatly asked.

"Not them, if I die, who'll be in charge feeding my fish? He relies one me!" The cowboy asked matter-of-factly, Mad Dawg's (and everyone else present) face simply read _are you kidding me?_

"Look, my point is, you have families, people who you care for, who you'd go to any lengths to protect… and Virus would find that out, and drag them and you into this twisted nightmare. I'd be putting you in danger, and them in danger as well, and I couldn't do that to you."

"We risk life and limb to protect the world from Talon almost daily." Genji countered, not seeing Mad Dawg's point. "You think this would be any different?"

Mad Dawg bit the side of his cheek before his eyes narrowed, almost seeming angered.

"Alright then." He said, pulling a device from his pocket out and setting it on the table. A video was projected of footage from a security camera, showing a small girl trapped in a steel and barbed wire cage.

"What is this Mad Dawg?" Winston asked, shocked at what he was watching.

"Shut up and watch." Mad Dawg ordered, suddenly _very_ angered.

The agents (and Dedsec) watched in horror as Mad Dawg ran into the room, trying to keep the girl awake, then listening to Virus' twisted voice tell him to save the girl or leave. Then, more than a few agents left to vomit somewhat as Mad Dawg sliced his gut open, some of his intestines spilling out as he attempted to save Alejandra. After the video ended, Mad Dawg lifted up his shirt, revealing a large scar.

"He _kidnapped_ her, _drugged_ her, _beat_ her, left her to die. And she was only ten years old." Mad Dawg growled, some of the agents taking a step back in fear, Tracer felt her spine practically freeze as Mad Dawg slowly turned to look at her. "What do you think he'd do to Emily? To Ana? To anyone older than that specific mark? Hell, he _may_ have done that that to her, I don't know. My lie hurt you. I won't try to avoid that, but I believed it was the only way to keep you from getting killed. Or worse." His anger turned to sadness as tears formed in his eyes again. "But… I did the exact thing I was trying to protect you from. I hurt you, all of you." Mad Dawg's hands slowly became their claw form as he scratched his temples slightly, seeming angry, and sad. "I…I… I'm sorry…"

Now the agents were somewhat confused (partially by the sudden claws), but also saddened. Genji now understood _why_ MD lied, they didn't like it, but at least there was some understanding.

"I don't know where we go from here, but I was tired of running, you all deserved the truth, even if I don't deserve your forgiveness." He paused for a few moments before adding: "That's all."

A few hours passed, the agents all dispersed, plenty of them staying behind to talk with Mad Dawg, comfort him, or ask some further questions. Sitara didn't want to let him go, but eventually he slipped away, knowing there was something he needed to do. Marcus had seen him disappear, and pulled up the bases security feed so him and some of the other agents could watch. Slowly, he walked into Mercy's office and got her attention.

"Oh, Mad Dawg." She said with a smile, but clearly still shook. "How can I help you?"

"Are you okay?" Mad Dawg simply asked, and Mercy didn't respond at first.

"Oh, this is gonna be good." Marcus grinned, Reinhardt taking a seat next to the hackers, with Junkrat sitting next to Wrench and Pharah and Symmetra joining as well.

"Turn it up." The crusader commented.

"What do you mean?" Mercy finally asked, trying to avoid the obvious question.

"Look, I'm sorry." Mad Dawg shook his head. "For attacking you in King's Row, for blaming you for everything. Ghosting you, saying those deaths were your fault."

"No, Mad Dawg. It _was_ my fault." Mercy replied sadly, not looking directly at him. "I… _did this_ to you. Those people who got hurt, the trauma you went through, I… I'm responsible for all that. I created you, and I didn't ensure you would be properly taken care of."

"Ms. Ziegler, you're not at fault here." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Like I said, don't blame yourself for that. Jax wanted to move on with the upgrades, but he didn't see what they were really doing, he wouldn't blame you for even a thousandth of a second."

"But…" Mercy began, but stopped when she began crying. It was quiet, but it got louder, and it hurt. Perhaps she was responsible for all that had happened, or perhaps it was survivor's remorse, a memory of someone else she failed to save. Mad Dawg however, immediately went to try and console her, giving her a warm hug. Knowing how this felt, and not wanting the woman who showed him nothing but kindness to feel this way.

"Mercy… all you've done is keep people together. But tonight, you can fall apart. Tonight, I'll keep you together."

Mercy broke down and sobbed into Mad dawg's shoulder.

"I never should have let her…. Distort you…" She managed to get out through the racking tears, while Mad Dawg just held her.

"It's okay… Because of you, I'm here now, and we're gonna get through this… That's… that's… that's…" Mad Dawg stammered on a word, unsure if he wanted to say it or not, but finally said it. "That's what family's for."

In the other room, those watching were doing their best to keep it together, until Marcus looked over to Reinhardt who was desperately trying to keep his face up.

"Bring it in man!" Marcus finally said, hugging the crusader and beginning to cry at the scene unfolding on the screen. Wrench and Junkrat were currently consoling one another, and the others simply stared in amazement, as the kid they found on the street had gorwn up, he may not physically be human, but he had a heart of gold, and a capacity for caring beyond anyone they knew. And at the end of it all, one thing was certain. There was no clear answer as to what was going to happen next, but they were going to face it. Dedsec, Overwatch, all of them.

As a team.

 **A.N. AGH! FINALLY! Once again, there were** _ **several**_ **points where I figured I could end the chapter, but I REALLY wanted to get all this out. So, there it is, Mad Dawg's back. Thing's aren't perfect, and there's two agents he still hasn't** _ **FULLY**_ **made amends with, but they'll be later chapters.**

 **Now, some good news and bad news.**

 **Good News: This story is going to be prolonged for a while.**

 **Bad News: It's gonna end eventually. I know how I want it to end, but there's some stuff I wanna do first. So, don't worry! Originally, I actually thought about ending it with the 'Bad Blood' arc, with Sombra killing Mad Dawg to protect herself, but ultimately that fired Talon's severs and destroyed them from the inside. But yeah, that didn't happen.**

 **I'm not sure if emotionally this chapter was well written, I know MD apologized** _ **A LOT**_ **but honestly… how should he have gone about it? Let me know in the comments.**

 **Bad News: There WON'T be another Halloween story arc for this year.**

 **Good News: There will be TWO Halloween stories in the companion fic, Talon: A Dawg's Tale (go see my profile)**

 **Bad News: School is happening again, so updates will be sporadic.**

 **Good News: Zyon's Legacy is coming back, and it's gonna be different. And there's a new story that is in no way connected to anything I've written thus far. (I swear.)**

 **Bad News: This story is gonna end (again)**

 **Good News: I do have future plans…**

 **So, if you enjoyed this chapter, like and follow! I love reading your reviews and would love some new ones! If you wanna share this around, feel free! (So long as you credit me as the author). You wanna talk? Need ideas for something? PM me. I'll do what I can.**

 **Okay, I'm my fingers hurt now. I'm off to watch Mayans MC and play DOOM.**

 **Until next time!**


	38. Mending Fences Part III

There was laughter coming from the tables pulled together at _Alexander The Geist's Great Food Diner,_ as a large group had decided they were gonna crash the diner for lunch. The sixteen, well, perhaps 'friends' wasn't the right term yet, but still close acquaintances laughed as they shared stories form their past. Only for the waitress' to come by with their orders. Marcus had ordered the inferno chicken wings, Junkrat had ordered the chilli, Tracer had ordered the soup, Wrench had ordered fires, two orders of them, Genji had ordered ramen (which led many of them to question how he was going to eat it, and some asked the same question of Wrench), Symmetra had ordered a salad, as had Mercy, Reinhardt and T-Bone both ordered (ironically) t-bone steaks, McCree ordered the angus burger, Mei had ordered fajitas, Pharah had ordered a BLT, Sitara ordered some nachos (and had to constantly slap Wrench, Marcus, and pretty much every guy except Genji and Zenyatta to stop them from stealing them), Josh just got some onion rings and was stealing form others, Zenyatta was also there but wasn't eating anything, and Mad Dawg ordered ribs. After their food had arrived, Sitara cast a glance over and noticed that Mad Dawg was munching on a salad he had ordered.

 _Wow, took you long enough to get to the actual story._ Mad Dawg though as he munched on some croutons.

 **Ignoring you.**

"Who are you and what have you done with Mad Dawg?" She asked bewildered. "The Dawg we knew _hated_ salad… and pretty much all vegetables."

"The only green thing he'd eat were those weird leaf brownies Wrench and Marcus made…" Josh dryly commented, not seeming to understand what he was saying, which caused everyone present, except Marcus and Wrench to go quiet and look at the two hackers.

"You… asshole…" Marcus muttered, realizing what Josh had just admitted to. Wrench's mask changed to a shocked expression before he yelled:

"It was all Marcus! I swear!"

"He's telling the truth!" T-Bone exclaimed. "Wrench just introduced the kid to porn and how to make pipe bombs!"

"Shut up Ray! You introduced him to liquor!" Wrench shot back, his mask emoting anger.

"Guys! Calm down!" Mad Dawg laughed. "You ALL introduced me to amazing things that made me who I am today."

"I know, that's why we're pissed." Sitara flatly stated, annoyed at the first things being mentioned by her friends to Mad Dawg's other friends was how they completely screwed him up.

"Hey it wasn't all bad." Mad Dawg continued, trying to de-fuse the situation. "Because of you, I actually had a name."

"Yeah, I've wanted ta' ask for a while, how the 'ell did he get a name like Mad Dawg?" Junkrat asked, genuinely curious. "It's awesome an' all, but where'd it come from?"

"That wasn't his first name actually." Marcus commented. "Back in the day we couldn't really agree on a decent name. I mean, I wanted to call him Ragnarök, T-Bone suggested we call him Mutt, Wrench had a particular name he wanted to call him." He ended with a cheeky grin and Mad Dawg was holding back laughter.

"Marcus, I will _hurt_ you." Wrench scowled threateningly. "Don't you _dare_ say it or so help me God I will shove your stun gun so far up your ass when I pull the trigger it will shoot out of your mouth."

"So, what? You wanted to call him like, Wrench Jr. or something?" Mei asked, enjoying the squabble.

"No that was the name of his sex bot." T-Bone commented before taking another drink of coffee. This got more of a reaction out of the agents who all turned shocked to Wrench who sighed annoyed.

"It was a _watcher_ bot Ray. Pokey was the sex bot Marcus found in the Bratva por- uh… film studio back in San Francisco." Wrench retorted buy quickly stopped, realizing this wasn't something to talk about. "Probably shouldn't've mentioned that…"

"You're correct on that regard." Mercy frowned, giving Wrench a somewhat angered look. And Wrench… just laughed nervously, feeling a cold sweat beginning to develop.

"Right… So, what was his name?" Tracer asked, somewhat grossed out but also seeing the awkwardness it was causing and wanted to move on.

"No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No." Wrench suddenly said, pointing at Josh, Sitara, Mad Dawg, Marcus and then repeating the action. "We're not telling them."

"Wrench, just tell them." Mad Dawg laughed.

"No."

"Do it."

"No."

"Do it."

"No."

"Do it."

"No."

"Do it or I'll tell them myself." Mad Dawg flatly said.

Wrench looked around at the agents and the other hackers before sighing in defeat. "It was Kaiju Megazord McThundercock…"

There was a shocked silence from the agents, some of whom were speechless in shock, until there was a stifled laugh from _Zenyatta_ of all people (or Omnics) and then Junkrat burst out into gales of laughter in the way only Junkrat could. His laughter was infectious, as Mad Dawg joined in, then McCree, then Genji, then Mei, and so on until eventually only Mercy and Tracer weren't laughing. Even Josh and Symmetra were trying their best not to. Mercy was somewhat angered at Wrench, and Tracer was to shocked to respond, but it was clear that the shock was slowly but surely turning to laughter. Wrench's mask was emoting ^ ^ but it was clear he was sheepish about it all.

"Okay… wow…" Genji shook his head. "I don't know if it's to be expected by now, or if I should be shocked by that."

"For the record, _none_ of us wanted that name for him as well." Marcus commented.

"Actually, Marcus voted for it as well." Josh simply stated.

"Not helping…" Marcus scowled.

"So, what else did you come up with?" Tracer asked with a smile, wiping a tear away from the laughter.

"Well, I tossed out Axel, Twitch, and Frewer." T-Bone commented. "Back home I had a real good friend named Frewer."

"I suggested Voltron, Splinter, and a few others…" Marcus added. "At the time, we weren't sure if he was gonna stay or not."

"Why… Voltron?" Symmetra asked bewildered and somewhat unamused.

"It sounded cool." Marcus simply replied, his eyes darting around. Symmetra however, roller her eyes at such a weak excuse.

"Honestly, the only reason why he ended up with 'Kace' and 'Dawg' were because of Josh mishearing us when I suggested 'Casey'." Sitara explained, taking a sip of her drink. "He suggested Kace and we all liked it. Honestly though, Marcus nicknamed him 'Dawg' while we were trying to find a name, and he kept saying it back to us, like it was the only thing he could say."

"I wouldn't be surprised if that was all he could say considering the mess we found him in…" Wrench muttered.

"Really? How'd you find him?" Mei asked.

"With a chunk of steel running through his skull…" T-Bone grumbled, shaking his head slightly, remembering the horrid condition Mad Dawg had arrived in. This did get an audible gasp from almost everyone present, who turned to Mad Dawg shocked, who seemed just as confused as everyone else.

"What? That happened?" Mad Dawg asked bewildered. "I thought you guys just made that up…"

The hackers looked around, suddenly growing somber.

"Well…" Marcus began. "You see…"

 _Several Years Ago…_

Retr0 landed and rolled across the rooftop, taking cover behind an air conditioner. Peaking around the corner he noticed an armed man walking back and forth, patrolling the rooftop. Slowly pulling out his EZ-Stun Gun, he aimed and pulled the trigger. The man began sporadically twitching before falling to the ground unconscious. Marcus ran over and searched him for the access card he needed to access their security systems. Finding his card, he took a picture of it and sent it to the other members of Dedsec.

"That it?" Marcus asked aloud.

"That should do it." Sitara replied, imputing the code into the servers she was stationed near. The screen lit up green granting her access, and she began downloading the cryptocurrency. "With these codes, we should be able to put a hold on some of the Saviours plans."

"Good." Marcus commented as he climbed off the roof onto the nearby garbage bin. "These assholes hurt to many people, someone needs to stop them."

"Any idea what we're gonna do with the money?" Josh spoke up, going straight into his question.

"Pizza party." Wrench simply replied as he finished dragging a member of the Saviors into a corner and then kicking him in the head one more time for good measure. "We've earned it."

"Call some women over, get some booze, I could be talked into that." T-Bone agreed, sitting in the van flipping through the radio stations trying to find a good song.

"No. Just… no." Sitara shook her head as she packed up her tablet and made her way quietly to the exit. "We might take some of it for further operations, but we're not spending it on hookers."

"Whoa, now hold on there, Sitara." T-Bone countered. "I ain't talking about hookers, I'm talking about exotic dancers."

"So, strippers." Josh commented in his flat tone, cutting through T-Bone's attempt at a façade.

"Oh, c'mon kid. Don't tell me you wouldn't be down to party!"

"Well… I've never really been to one…" Josh awkwardly explained.

"Then I'll show you." T-Bone offered, suddenly entering 'Awesome Old Guy Mode'. "We'll be two party animals against the world!"

"Enough you guys." Sitara laughed slightly.

Meanwhile, Marcus was walking back to the van when he tripped over something. Shaking his head, he looked around then saw what he had tripped over. Lying on the ground, trying to use a pizza box as a blanket was a small boy with a noticeable wound on the side of his head. Actually, on further inspection, it seemed like a chunk of his temple was simply gone, with a shard of metal stuck in where it should be. Marcus was horrified, both by the wound and the fact that a small boy was abandoned in the alleyway. The boy (who was still asleep) turned over and now Marcus noticed that he was wearing incredibly torn cloth, not even a shirt… and his body was covered in bruises and scars, all of his ribs were noticeable and his stomach seemed so concave his spine was noticeable. His hair was more than halfway down his back and it was mangled and knotty, he wore shredded pants and had a noticeable scar across his leg.

"Holy crap…" He breathed, unsure of what to do. "Uh… guys?"

"Everything alright?" Wrench asked.

"No. Most definitely not." Marcus shakily answered.

"Where are you?! I'm on my way! Well, as soon as you tell me where you are." Wrench exclaimed, clearly ready to drop everything and go, but quickly realized the error in what he was saying.

"No, I'm… I'm fine… It's… Oh my God… Listen, do we have a med kit in the van?"

"Josh looked around and then replied. "Yes. Why?"

"I… I can't explain. Not over the phone. I'll be right there." Marcus said before hanging up. Silently slipping off his jacket he slowly wrapped the small kid up in it before picking him up. Then, a thought raced through his mind.

 _What the heck was he doing?_

Marcus however, shook his head expelling those thoughts as he made his way towards the van, doing his best not to wake the small child. He didn't know much about first aid, but he did know this kid was gonna die if he didn't do something.

"Hang in there, kid. We're gonna get you patched up." He muttered. He understood this looked weird to anyone walking down the street but he didn't care. Seeing the van, he got to the back and banged on the door and T-Bone opened it.

"What the hell were you going on abou-Holy crap." T-Bone began to question but stopped when he saw the bloodied child in Marcus' arms. "Get him in here."

Closing the doors behind him, Marcus unwrapped the small boy and T-Bone set to trying to get the supplies needed to clean his wounds.

"Okay, can someone please explain to me-" Sitara began as she entered but went into a silent shock as she saw the small boy on the van seat in what she hoped was sleep. "What happened?" She quietly asked.

"I… Okay, don't get mad." Marcus began awkwardly. "I was walking down the alleyway towards the van, and this kid was lying on the ground. I know this ain't exactly what Dedsec does, but I couldn't leave him there. Right now, we need to be careful, try and be quiet, when he wakes up we can try and ask-"

"THE HELL!?" Wrench exclaimed as he saw the kid on the seat. The hackers turned angrily to him and the small boy bolted up awake.

"Wha-wheam-" He mumbled out. The looking around he saw a group of adults he didn't know, and a man wearing spiked clothing. Needless to say, he began freaking out. He jumped onto the ground and tried to run to the back door of the van, making the hackers scramble. Marcus grabbed his stun gun and aimed it at the kid until Wrench grabbed him.

"THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" He shouted.

"Wuarouywheami?!" The boy exclaimed, still terrified, trying to hide his face from the hackers.

"Calm down kid. Where not going to hurt you."

Everyone was shocked when Josh of all people got down onto one knew to be more at his level, speaking in his calm but somewhat flat tone. And it seemed to work, the small boy stopped trying to escape but was still shaking, clearly terrified. Josh slowly reached out and put his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"It's alright, we're here to help."

"Idonwanurtomor…" The boy mumbled. His eyes filling with tears.

"It's alright, we're gonna help you, we'll get you feeling better." Josh said as he set him back down on the seat. "We need to get back to the hackerspace."

"Whoa, hold on." T-Bone said surprised. "The hackerspace? Josh, the kid needs a _hospital._ _NOW_."

"Yeah, he does, but we can't take him there." Josh reasoned. "If we show up with a bloodied kid, there's gonna be questions, both for us and for the kid. And I don't think hacking government records to get a kid medical attention is the best thing to do. Yes, people do see us a sort of 'heroes' but not like those… those…"

"Overwatch guys?" Wrench asked.

"Yeah, them." Josh nodded. "It just dosen't seem like a good idea to take him to a hospital right now."

"I don't like it… but Josh has a point." Marcus conceded grimly. "Whatever we choose, I say we do it fast, I don't like the condition this kid is in."

"Alright, all for the hospital?" T-Bone asked, and received no response. "Hackerspace?"

"Yes." Was collective said.

"Haxerspahe…" The boy gargled out. Sitara sat down next to him and gently wrapped her arm around him, pulling him close.

"Hi honey, do you have a name?" She asked in a kind tone.

"Batafivstephensex." He said in his mumbled way.

"Aww… C'mere honey." She said with a smile, pulling him closer and patting the top of his head. "Get some rest sweetie, we'll patch you up, you'll see."

The boy tentatively calmed down, and despite his best efforts finally let his eyes slowly close and drifted back to sleep. Sitara adjusted him in her lap then looked back up.

"What are we gonna do?" She finally asked.

"Clean him up, get that steel out of his head. Go from there." Marcus answered. "This is… messed up."

The drive back was quiet, aside from the occasional murmur from the small boy. When they returned they went down to the basement they were operating out of and set him on a table and all got a good look at him. There were cuts and burns up and down his chest and arms, on his lower left side of his torso, a tattoo of a grey 'T' was noticeable.

"Okay, I'm gonna get some supplies." Wrench stated suddenly seeming much more serious than anyone had seen him before. "Josh, I need you to get some towels and a bucket of water, and a bottle of alcohol. Actually, make that two. Marcus, I need you to go topside and try and keep an eye out in case anyone followed us, Sitara, stand by him and hold him down in case he starts to freak out, and T-Bone? Grab the gas mask."

"Wait. What?!" Sitara exclaimed shocked. "We're NOT giving him drugs!"

"Sitara, I'm gonna have to _pull steel out from his head._ He's gonna be in a _LOT_ of pain."

"That could kill him!"

"And leaving it in there will kill him as well." Wrench reasoned. "There isn't time!"

After cleaning the supplies, Wrench set to work cleaning and stitching the wounds as best as he could. All of a suddenly he stopped and watched in shock as some of the cleaned wounds began closing and repairing themselves, leaving a small mark, but even that seemed to disappear.

"What the hell?" Wrench muttered in disbelief. "Yo, Ray. Did you see that?"

"I saw it, but I sure as hell don't believe it." He shook his head.

"What? What happened?" Sitara asked worried.

"His wounds… they're healing on their own!" Wrench exclaimed, his mask emoting shock. "My God! He's a superhero!"

As time went on, Dedsec tried to understand how he could be healing, but also appreciated it because it made patching him up easier. In time, Wrench had cleaned all the noticeable wounds, and they had closed themselves. The boy had remained quiet but was still crying noticeably, trying not to complain about the pain. Sitara sat next to him gently talking to him sweetly, keeping him distracted. Finally, there was only one issue left… the large chunk of metal in his head. Now, Wrench and T-Bone were looking at it from a distance, trying to determine what to do about it.

"We gotta take it out." Wrench finally sighed. "Like it or not, it's gotta go."

"You really think the kid's ability will heal _that?_ " Ray asked questioningly. "Ripping it out could kill him."

"I don't know. But… I dunno." He shook his head walking over to the table. "Hey, kid. Can you understand me?"

The small boy nodded in response.

"Listen… you've got a lot of metal in your head, we can remove it. But it'll hurt. Do you want us to do this?"

After a few moments with no response, Wrench received his answer with another nod.

"Alright. Ray, get the mask. Let's do this."

After 'medicating' the small boy, Ray grimaced as he held the boy's head while Wrench inhaled deeply while holing a pair of plyers.

"Hey, everything good down her- what the f**k?!" Marcus exclaimed as he walked into the room, seeing what T-Bone and Wrench were doing.

"Marcus, not now." Wrench grimaced. "Here we go."

Suddenly pulling back hard, the room was filled by the agonized screams of a child, blood began flowing out from the side of his head as the somewhat rusted metal squelched against flesh and muscle. Wrench continued to struggle as he used the pliers to keep pulling the scrap out.

"For snake's sake Wrench! You're killing him!" Josh shouted, genuinely terrified.

"Almost there!" Wrench replied.

By now, the blood-soaked metal was making its way out, and was nearly gone. Wrench strained against it as it seemed to catch on something, praying to whatever was above that he wasn't ripping the kid's brains out. With one final pull, the long, jagged shard of metal was torn out from the child's skull and everyone stopped, shakily breathing. Wrench fell backwards and onto the ground and groaned annoyed as he grabbed the metal and threw it into a nearby bucket of junk. The kid stopped breathing and then didn't move.

"Oh my God… he's dead!" Sitara whimpered, seeing the boy was not moving.

"Oh… God…" Wrench groaned.

"I think I'm gonna be sick." Marcus mumbled.

"Damn…" T-Bone sighed.

After being frozen in shock for a full minute, and odd sound was heard, slowly but surely the hole in the side of the boy's head closed, an odd crunching sound was heard as the skull re-formed and then muscle and skin re-grew over it closing it.

"Wait. Is he-"

Before the question could be asked, the boy coughed and leaned up, looking down at his chest. Sitara rushed to his side and gave him a tender hug, tears of relief flowing down her face.

"Nomoow." He mumbled, seeming… happy. Looking over to the hackers he added: "Thanyou!"

"Aww!" Sitara cooed, picking him up in the sheets and bundling him up. "You're so adorable!"

The boy responded with a sound that sounded like a laugh and Sitara smiled down at him. After some clean up (both of the table and Sitara drawing a bath for the kid) Marcus had found an oversized Dedsec shirt which the kid was now wearing as a sort of shirt-gown and was sitting on the couch, slurping down some ramen noodles T-Bone had made, while the hackers stood off to the side.

"So… what are we gonna do with him?" Marcus finally asked the question everyone was thinking.

"He seems like a lost puppy…" Wrench commented, leaning against a support beam. "We should keep him!"

"Seriously Wrench?" Sitara asked questioningly. "He's not an animal! What if he has a family?!"

"If he had a family, why was he out in the streets for so long?" Marcus asked. "Just look at him, it seems like he's been out there for _months_ at this point."

"Regardless of how long he's been out there, he does need a home, at least temporarily." Josh commented, nodding in agreement.

"Maybe it's just me, but I see nothing wrong with him staying here." Marcus shrugged. "Even if we find his family-"

"And beat their asses for abandoning their kid!" Wrench cut in.

"…and he goes home, I'm fine with him crashing here."

"I'm fine with it." T-Bone shrugged.

"Look, are we _really_ the most competent people to take care of a kid?" Sitara asked. "I mean… is this the right place for a kid to grow up?"

"Well, Dedsec was always sort of a place for those who needed a place to come together and grow stronger. And right now, this kid needs a place to stay." Marcus commented. "Besides, he seems to like you."

Sitara paused thinking it over. Was this the best place for a kid to stay? If not, where would he go? She hadn't even known him a full day, but was she getting attached?

"Well? What's it gonna be Sitara?" Ray asked.

"Sithara?" Came a small voice, the boy's face slightly peaking over the top of the couch, his large eyes innocently looking at them. "Plethletmestay…" He whispered in an innocent voice, probably believing they couldn't hear him, and at that moment, Sitara's heart melted.

"Are you _really_ gonna say no to that Sithara?" Marcus asked with a cheeky grin.

The hackers looked around to one another then over to the small boy who yawned audibly as he laid down on the couch, Sitara smiled and pulled a blanket over him.

"Welcome home kid." She said with a smile. She stroked his head for a few moments before seeing he had fallen asleep. Getting back up and turning to the others.

"It just occurred to me… What's his name?" Wrench asked.

The hackers looked around before Marcus finally spoke up.

"I got it. Kaiju…"

 _Present Day…_

"So, after that, what happened?" Mercy asked, somewhat shocked by the story, as were most of the agents, it seemed so… harsh, that Mad Dawg had been found in an alley way, and yet he seemed so… optimistic despite everything that had happened to him.

"Well, for a few years the kid lived with us. We taught him the ropes." Marcus explained, but then saw the saddened look on Mad Dawg's face before shaking his head. "And… Well, y'know."

"No. We don't." Genji commented in his cybernetic voice. "That's why we're asking."

"We're not gonna go much further than what we've said." Ray commented before taking a bite of his steak, and the heroes understood that this wasn't for them to ask questions.

"So, you taught the kid how ta make bombs?" Junkrat asked Wrench. "Mate, I think you an'I are gonna be good pals."

"Hell yeah." Wrench said, his mask emoting happiness and high-fiving the Junker.

"You two got a lot in common, you refuse to wear shirts, your both probably slow, and don't like showing your real faces." Mad Dawg smirked.

Wrench and Junkrat looked at one another until Junkrat spoke up.

"Wanna break his spine?"

"Oh hell yeah."

"Try it bitch." Mad Dawg retorted, only for Mercy to elbow him in the ribs to get him to calm down.

"Hey, at least I've got the balls to show my face, I don't spend my days hiding behind a damn mask."

"And here we go again…" Mad Dawg muttered, shaking his head. "Calm down you two or I'm getting the shirt out."

"The shirt?" Reinhardt questioned.

"Yeah, Sitara has this oversized t-shirt that says 'This is out get along shirt'. And she'd force us to wear it when we fought. It happened **A LOT**."

"We should get one of those for you and your brother." Pharah commented, looking over to Genji who stopped eating and let out a long exhale.

"No."

"Now I _really_ wanna see the two of them in one." Tracer grinned.

"I will stab you if you try that." The cyborg commented, a hint of anger in his tone.

"Perhaps this 'Get Along Shirt' _would_ be helpful for you." Zenyatta commented.

"Not you to master…" Genji grumbled.

"So, his real name is Kace?" Symmetra commented with a raised brow. Trying to get away from the fight that was moments away from breaking out.

"Well, we came up with Kace Horatio Teller, but after about a month, we changed it to 'Dawg'." Sitara rolled her eyes. "Kace became his alibi."

"Really? Why didn't you stick with Kace?"

"Because he couldn't pronounce it." Sitara sighed.

"It was funny as hell." T-Bone laughed. "The kid was going around trying to say it, but he had some sort of speech impediment growing up and it came out as something much, _much_ worse!"

The agents paused, thinking it over, then McCree fell face fist onto the table laughing as he realized what they were implying. Then Mad dawg, Junkrat, and a few of the others started laughing as well.

"I'm surrounded by children…" T-Bone muttered.

"Agreed." Reinhardt commented as he and T-bone toasted drinks before drinking.

After the meal, the hackers and agents weren't sure as to what was next, but Mad Dawg and Tracer were outside the diner watching the cars go by.

"This… feels wrong." Mad Dawg chuckled.

"How so?" Tracer asked, her curiosity piqued.

"I dunno man… It's just… you all are so… accepting of all this. Of everything I did, after all my mistakes you still care."

"Aw, we could never hate you love!" Tracer smiled over at him.

"Yeah…" Mad Dawg smiled, looking down. "I'm glad to know that now." Mad Dawg then took a cigarette out from his pocket and lit it, he paused for a moment before taking it out of his mouth and looking at Tracer who was confused as he was. "Why do I even have these?"

"I… you… you don't smoke." Tracer simply commented.

Suddenly, Sitara appeared and grabbed the cig from Mad Dawg and threw it out seeming angry with him.

"That shit'll kill you Kace!" She snapped.

"I don't even know where I got it! Skorch, what the hell?"

 **I dunno, seemed like the kinda thing you'd do in this scenario.**

"I don't smoke!"

 **What about that time with McCree?**

"I was trying them because he peer pressured me into doing that!"

 **And that time with Lúcio?**

"That was different." Mad Dawg muttered, then suddenly realized something he had been missing the entire time since he had gotten back.

"Lúcio…" He muttered in realization.

"Um. Are you alright love?" Tracer asked confused as to why Mad Dawg was yelling at the sky.

"Yeah, yeah… I'm… I'm good." He nodded before looking over to Mercy. "Cruz dosen't know I'm back yet, does he?"

"Well, I don't believe he does." Mercy thought it over. "He's been busy making new music ever since the… um, fallout. And he hasn't been back since."

Mad Dawg went quiet seeming saddened again before shaking his head. No. No more crying, not yet. Not here.

"Listen Angela, I think I'm gonna need a day or two off." He said. "I know I just got back, but I gotta deal with something."

"Of course, dear." She smiled. "I'll let Jack know you're dealing with _personal_ business."

Mad Dawg began walking away, thinking about something when Sitara turned to Mercy.

"He hasn't been smoking has he?" She asked.

"No, I've caught him doing it once or twice, but that was only because Jesse, ahem, 'pressured' him into it." Mercy replied with a sigh and a roll of her eyes.

"No one forces my little Dawg into something like that…" Sitara grumbled. "I'm gonna… Talk to him. You wanna help?"

"Of course." Mercy grinned as the two women walked into the diner to 'talk' with a familiar cowboy.

 _Two Days Later… In Las Vegas_

Lúcio Correia dos Santos walked down the hotel hallway towards his room, high-fiving an employee as he went. After entering his room, he flopped back on his bed and sighed loudly, cracking his neck to each side the Dj finally felt like he could get some rest. From the moment, he set foot back in the recording studio, it felt like he couldn't get a moments rest. Over the past four (or so) months, Lúcio only may have released four new songs, but they were mega hits. The first of the three, titled _Virus Detected_ was a 'Tribute' to the ex-musician who Lúcio _hated_ now more than anyone, the hardest part about the past few months was having to act sad when the news broke that Virus was dead… And not being able to tell the truth about the skitso-psycho's true nature. _Techno Jungle_ was his most energetic of the three, being a base-heavy rave song that he performed numerous times when he went to nightclubs, either for a gig or not, people and Omnic loved it. Even The Crimson Phoenix had posted something on his social media proclaiming his love for the song. His third song _No Mercy_ had become a meme online, and Lúcio loved that, as much as it could be considered 'unprofessional' Lúcio loved listening to the meme remixes during the day, there was a lot of talent behind some of them… And some of them were utter garbage.

The good kind.

Finally, there was _A Dog's Day_ a slower, but no less energetic song. Lúcio had thought about adding lyrics to it, but when he tried to sing the lyrics he had, a story about a man and his dog growing old together, only for the man to outlive the dog, his throat seized up and he couldn't as he remembered who wrote the first draft of the lyrics.

Mad Dawg.

Lúcio refused to simply be defeated like that, and finished the song. People and Omnics all over began sending him messages about how it reminded them of their pets or family remembers they missed, and how this song meant so much to them. On the new album lyric booklet thing, Lúcio had added _Dedicated_ _To: MD_. He still kept in touch with Overwatch, but was a little bit bitter still over how Dawg was treated, and hadn't gone back yet. Shaking his head to clear it, he grabbed a can of Accelerator Energy and cracked it open as he turned on the tv. After flipping through a few channels, he stopped on a movie, _Tenacious D In The Pick Of Destiny._ Lúcio grinned widely as he kicked back onto the bed to enjoy the comedy, thinking back and trying to remember how many times he had seen this film. His smile suddenly faded when a song began to play, a slow, sad guitar song. Then, the lyrics hit him.

 _Dude, I totally miss you._

"Oh, come on!" He grumbled, changing the channel, he was trying NOT to be reminded of Mad Dawg! Why was this so hard?!

" _I hope you're okay Dawg. Where ever you are_ …" Lúcio thought sadly, before closing his eyes and letting sleep overtake him.

Or at least, that WOULD have happened had he not just shotgunned half an energy drink. After a few minutes of nothing, Lúcio groaned annoyed and jumped off the bed and walked to the balcony. Leaning against it and looking out over the neon colours. He heard what sounded like a jetpack (he knew that form hanging out with Pharah) and his eyes widened in surprise as the Crimson Phoenix ascended up to the balcony.

"Hello Mr. Santos." The Phoenix said in his deep voice. "Your music is awesome. I am a huge fan."

"No way! The Crimson Phoenix!? I wasn't expecting this!" Lúcio laughed in amazement. "Man, you have no idea how much I've wanted to meet you! C'mon in dude!" Landing on the balcony and following the Dj into the room, the Phoenix looked around and whistled.

"Can I get you a drink?" Lúcio asked.

"I'll take a White Russian… But don't let me drink more than one. Drinking and flying… It does not end well. I should know."

Lúcio laughed as he remembered a certain friend of his having too much then crashing into a snowbank last New Year's Eve…

"I've got a friend who would agree with you there." He chuckled. "Hey, if it ain't too much to ask, mind telling me how you got your start?"

"Well, if I'm bring honest. It was because of you." Phoenix relied, thinking it over.

"Me?"

"Yeah, I was listening to your song, _Rise Up_ and it… Inspired me. I wanted to fight and help those who couldn't help themselves. After I heard your story about how you led your neighbours against whatever they're name was, I wanted to help people, fight for the innocent, Y'know… Rise up."

Lúcio smiled at the Phoenix before handing him his drink.

"A lot of people tell me my music inspired them, but listening to your story… It feels good man. Knowing I was able to help someone who went on to help others, that's the stuff I love man."

"I can agree." Phoenix nodded. "Many have said they want to help people after seeing me fight for justice, they might not all be able to wear a jetpack and fight criminals, but to me, it's a do what you can sorta thing."

Lúcio nodded, pouring some vodka into a glass, something about Phoenix's voice seemed… familiar. Or maybe he was just tired. Probably that.

"Mind if I ask you something?" Phoenix asked after a few moments of peaceful silence.

"Fire away dude."

"In the new album, it was dedicated to someone. Who's 'MD'?"

"Oh… MD…" Lúcio coughed. "He was a friend of mine. He got into some trouble and decided to take the high road while everyone tried to drag him on the low road. His name was Marcus Devin, cool guy."

"Marcus Devin?" Phoenix asked, scratching his chin slightly despite wearing the mask. "Hm. How long did you know him?"

"Years, we've known each other for nearly a decade." Lúcio lied. "He was a good dude, he helped me with some of my songs."

"Impressive. At this point I'm sure you've heard this a thousand times at this point, but I still want to say it. I loved A dog's story, the arrangement was beautiful, soothing yet energetic. I'm sure Mad Dawg would've loved it."

Lúcio nearly dropped the drink he had made as he slowly turned around to face the masked vigilante.

"Who are you…talking about?" He shakily asked. Feeling a chill run down his spine.

"Who do you think?" The Phoenix asked, his voice suddenly jumping back up to its normal tone. With a slight rustling, "I _know_ Mad Dawg loved it." The Crimson Phoenix finished removing his helmet, with a shake of his head and Mad Dawg smiled at Lúcio. "Hey dude."

"No…nonononononononononoNO WAY!" Lúcio shouted, his shock turning to joy as he ran and hugged Mad Dawg tightly. "I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! YOU'RE ALIVE DUDE!"

"Miss me?" Mad Dawg asked cheekily.

"What the hell do you think?!" Lúcio shouted in a mix of sarcasm and anger. "I'VE BEEN HOPING YOU WERE OKAY!"

Mad Dawg smiled and hugged his friend back as they laughed. Mad Dawg lifted the musician off the ground and kept on hugging him. Setting him back down Mad Dawg took his Phoenix suit off and cracked his arms.

"Grab a seat dude. We've got some stuff to talk about." Mad Dawg commented.

Over the course of the next few hours, Mad Dawg explained everything. From McCree's kidnapping, to his history with Dedsec, to the truth about him and where he came from. Lúcio just sat and listened, shocked, saddened and in the end, happy that his friend was back.

"So, it's true… You are a mutant…" He mused. "I'll be honest, me and a few of the others guessed you may have been a mutant. But… Geez… I never would've thought all that was part of it…"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. "Listen Santos, I wanted to apologize, for lying, for getting you dragged into this-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up." Lúcio cut him off. "You didn't drag me into anything. I _chose_ to go looking for you, I chose to trick Reaper into joining forces with me. I chose all of this, don't blame yourself."

"I… Look, I've done this song and dance way too many times at this point, I'm just happy to be back. I wanted to come tell you I was back in person though. And what I said was true, part of my motivation to become the Crimson Phoenix was your music, when I was hanging with you and the others, I felt like a hero. I wanted to help people like we did back then."

 **Dude, you 'saved' people by running at them with a chainsaw.**

 _Shut. Up._

"I believe you." Lúcio nodded. "And that means a lot, thank you."

"Listen… Is it okay if I crash here tonight? I don't have enough jet fuel to get back tonight."

"No problem." Lúcio grinned. "There's a couch you can crash on."

"Awesome! Thanks man!" Mad Dawg smiled before yawning. "Holy crap. It's two in the morning…"

"Eh, this is normal to me." The musician shrugged.

"Yeah? Well, I'm still technically a teen. You've been doing this for years."

"Touché."

"G'night Lúcio." Mad Dawg said as he got up and headed towards the couch.

"Night Dawg."

"Hey, thanks for everything. I mean that." Mad Dawg added before heading to bed.

Lúcio lay back on his bed, feeling like he could sleep now, knowing his teammate, and his friend, was finally back.

The next morning, Mad Dawg groaned as the sun slowly made its way into the room. As he dragged himself up and went into the bathroom, his phone began buzzing. It was _too_ early to be taking calls, but at the same time, he didn't want to alienate any of his teammates.

"Yeah?" He answered tiredly.

"Hey, Mad Dawg. You alright?" Brigitte's voice came from the other side.

"Peachy." He yawned.

"Good. Listen, I… have an odd question for you."

"For the last time, I am not an ancient reincarnated spirit of death. That Forrest Valley thing was beyond even my understanding."

"That wasn't my question." Brigitte flatly replied.

"Oh. What do you want?"

"…If you're not doing anything next week… Would you like to come to my family's thanksgiving dinner?"

 **A.N. Oh boy, next chapter is gonna be GOOD!**

 **And that's pretty much it for this story arc, Mad Dawg's doing his best to mend relationships and trust. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the past few chapters (and followed and favorited, you are all awesome) especially Rea. Ev (you know who you are). So even though I'm Canadian, the next chapter will be the second Thanksgiving special. And it'll be… interesting to say the least. I mean, think about it. A Talon-Bred genetic monstrosity having dinner with the man he accused of starting what is essentially WWIII? And meeting his family? Bring popcorn is my advice. Until then, see you around.**


	39. Thanksgiving with the Lindholm's

"Why the hell am I doing this?" Mad Dawg muttered nervously.

He stood outside a large, well maintained house in Sweden, a beautiful garden extending around the front to the side of the house. The wooden columns were sturdy and seemed to be freshly painted and smelled of pine. Mad Dawg sighed and looked back towards the door. He wore a dark grey hoodie with neon green accents and a wool red beanie that sagged backwards somewhat. He looked down at the mashed potatoes he brought before sighing aloud. It had been a few days since he had meet up with Lúcio and now he was in Sweden. He finally worked up enough courage to knock on the front door, after a few moments on no answer, the door opened and a woman with blonde hair and an apron stood in the opening. She reminded Mad Dawg of Mercy, a lot. She seemed a bit confused before giving him a friendly smile.

"Um… Mrs. Lindholm?" He asked timidly.

"Yes." She said with a curt nod.

"I… don't believe we've talked before, my name is… Mad Dawg."

"Oh yes! You're Brigitte's friend." She said with smile.

"Yeah, I also work with your husband, Torbjörn, and the other agents of Overwatch." Mad Dawg added, incredibly awkwardly as it may be but still with a friendly tone. "Um, I also go by Kace if that's easier."

"Oh, forgive me, my name is Ingrid, please, do come in." Ingrid said stepping to the side and allowing Mad Dawg to enter. Taking his shoes off he looked around confused before following Ingrid into the kitchen. He looked down at the mashed potatoes he had then back up.

"I… I uh had Angela help make this, but I'm used to ramen and mountain dew for dinner so… It may not be the best."

"I'm sure it'll be fine." Ingrid replied with a smile before clearing her throat and turning to Mad Dawg, seeming a bit nervous. "Listen, please don't take this the wrong way, but is there anything we should be worried about?"

"I think I know what you mean, but I'd like to hear what you mean." Mad Dawg replied in a quiet tone, and Ingrid sighed.

"I've heard… things about you from my husband. And while you don't seem like the kind of person he may have made you out to be, I want it to be clear you are _not_ to do anything that would endanger our children or grandchildren. Is that clear?"

" _A little late for that…"_ Mad Dawg internally commented before saying. "Of course. Those… things you've heard, I've made mistakes, and I want to rectify them. If you don't want me here-"

"Oh! I didn't mean it like that-I." Ingrid stammered, realizing how coldly that came across.

"It's fine." Mad Dawg said with a shake of his head. "I get it, I do. Don't worry. I'll keep it together."

Setting the pot down Mad Dawg paused, thinking if they had anything on him he should ditch. He had one thing, but they didn't need to know about that. So, he left the room and walked down a long hallway with several paintings hung on either side of the hall.

" _Last chance to get out…"_ He mused, pausing for a few moments, thinking if he really did want to go through with this…

"Um, excuse me." Came a small voice. Turning around, Mad Dawg looked down at a small girl, who seemed to be about six or seven with dark blonde hair looking up at him confused. "Who are you?"

Mad Dawg smiled and got down on one knee so he was closer to her eye level.

"My name's Mad Dawg, I'm a friend of Brigitte." He said with a smile, only for the girl to tilt her head in confusion.

"Mad… Dog?" She repeated. "That's your name?"

"Yeah, it's my name." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Um… Okay, my name's Isabelle." The girl replied in a quiet voice.

"Hiya Isabelle. Have you seen Angela Ziegler by any chance?"

"Yes! Follow me!" The girl seemed to beam at the mention of Mercy. She suddenly took Mad Dawg's hand and led him down the hall.

"Sorry for asking, but how'd you get a dog name?" The small girl asked.

"Well, I guess I just got lucky in that regard." Mad Dawg replied with a shrug.

"Must be weird if you ever need to get a driver's card or something…"

"Yeah, it is. That's also why I try to stay out of politics and things like that. I don't think anyone would take it seriously if they heard 'All Rise for the honorable Judge Dawg!'. I dunno, don't think that would go over too well."

into a large living room where a lot of people he didn't recognize, aside from Reinhardt, Mercy, and Brigitte. No sign of Torbjörn… Some of the kids cast confused glances over to Mad Dawg who stood quietly off to the side, trying not to draw attention to himself.

"Hey there."

Looking over, an older man with brown hair walked into the door way and nodded to Mad Dawg.

"Name's Gordon, what's yours?"

"Mad Dawg."

"…for real?"

"Mad Dawg my friend!" Reinhardt's voice suddenly cut through the room, making everyone turn to him.

"So much for laying low…" He muttered. "Suuuuuuuuuup?"

At this point, everyone turned and looked at him puzzled.

"Th'names Mad Dawg." He introduced himself. "And yes, that is my real name."

"That name is awesome!" A small boy exclaimed enthusiastically. "How'd you get it?!"

"Dedsec." Mad Dawg answered. "If you don't know who they are, then you're too young."

"I still don't know who they are." Reinhardt commented.

"I rest my case." Mad Dawg said, motioning to the crusader.

Isabelle smiled up at her new friend before pulling on his pant leg.

"Ms. Ziegler is busy but she said she'll be here in just a second."

"Thanks Izzy." He replied with a smile.

"Ah, Mad Dawg… Forgot you were coming…" Torbjörn said, walking in from the other side of the room.

"Hey Mr. Lindholm…" Mad Dawg said with a slight wave. The awkwardness in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Another woman walked into the room behind Mad Dawg bumped into him.

"Oh, sorry." She said sheepishly. "Um, have we met before?"

"Not yet." Mad Dawg shrugged. "I'm Mad Dawg."

"Maja." She said with a smile. "Brigitte's mentioned you a few times."

"Oh, she has, has she?" Mad Dawg said, casting a glance over to Brigitte who looked away. At this point, several of the kids came over, and Mad Dawg got down to their level to say hello.

"Any reason you invited him?" Torbjörn skeptically asked Brigitte.

"Well, he has no family aside from Angela, and Angela is our family." Brigitte reasoned. "Besides, he isn't as bad as you seem to think he is."

Before Torbjörn could reply, Ingrid stepped into the room.

"Dinner's ready!" She said cheerily.

Letting some of the kids run past him, Mad Dawg got up and stumbled forward when Reinhardt slapped his back as he passed him. He waited till everyone was out of the room and stopped Torbjörn as he was leaving.

"Hey, of you don't want me here, I can go." He said in a low tone, his face unsure of what to do.

"Nah, if Brigitte asked you to come here, I'm fine with it." Torbjörn said with a slightly dismissive wave. "Just do us a favor and try to keep the stories on the down low."

"Oh of course." Mad Dawg nodded readily. "I don't even know why she wanted me to come here."

"Maybe she's in love." Torb shrugged.

"Aaaaaaaaaand I'm out." Mad Dawg said flatly, walking away.

"Aw, c'mon kid." Torb chuckled. "Ingrid was hoping you'd try her turkey."

"Aaaaaaaaaand I'm in." Mad Dawg said, turning around.

As the two walked into the large dining room, Mad Dawg looked at the huge wooden table covered with food, he watched as everyone went to their seats and he looked confused for a moment until Isabelle grabbed his hand. Mad Dawg let her lead him over to an empty seat with Brigitte on his right. Sitting across from them, Mercy smiled at him with Reinhardt next to her, and Ingrid and Torbjörn sat at the end. After praying, the Lindholm's began passing food around. Mad Dawg took some turkey, vegetables and mashed potatoes before helping serve Isabelle some. After everyone was eating, Ingrid smiled over to him.

"So… Mad Dawg." She said, still feeling odd about calling him that. "Tell us a little about yourself."

" _Tell them what? That I'm a mutant? That I'm a sort of serial killer?"_ Mad Dawg paused, trying to think of what to say.

"Uh… Not much to say." He shrugged. "Just… Just a guy I guess. I play guitar somewhat… not much to say…"

There was a very awkward silence form Mad Dawg, Torbjörn, Brigitte, and Reinhardt, as all three tried to figure out what the heck could they say?

"If you're looking for info on who I am, I think the best term would be a wanderer." Mad Dawg continued, unaware that most of the people present were now listening with interest. "If we're being honest, I never really stayed in one place for too long. I moved a lot because I wanted to find a place that felt like home. Eventually I got tangled up in some stuff between Talon and Overwatch and I figured that Overwatch seemed like the kind of people I'd wanna roll with."

"So, you're an agent of Overwatch too?" Isabelle asked, looking up at Mad Dawg.

" _Oh boy… Here we go…"_ Mad Dawg internally grimaced.

"Well, sorta. I'm more… an intern to use that terminology incorrectly." Mad Dawg shrugged. "Long story short, I'm sorta in training, we see how things go, and we go from there."

"Do you specialize in anything?" One of the kids asked.

"I use a crossbow and a chainsaw." Mad Dawg replied with a shrug trying not to go too far. "The formers actually used in combat, the latter is more to try and scare people."

"I'll admit, seeing you throw it like a Frisbee is oddly terrifying yet cool." Reinhardt nodded.

"Was your family in Overwatch before you?" Another one of the kids asked.

"No." Mad Dawg shook his head, not sure how to answer it. "My family… that's a bit of a story."

"So, how's the hero life been treating you?" Maja asked.

Almost immediately, the memories of Mad Dawg being savagely beaten into the ground by Solider: 76 returned.

"Fine… I guess…" He replied and Torbjörn coughed, the two exchanging an _Oh boy…_ look. "There's been good and bad, like the time I believed I could beat Zarya in boxing blindfolded."

There was a good amount of laughter from everyone present at that.

"We didn't even fight. She and a bunch of the others duct taped me to the wall and left me there."

After the laugher died down again, Mercy shook her head.

"Honestly, I was hoping you'd be more mature that how you reacted…" She commented.

"What did you do?" Isabelle asked, and Mad Dawg smiled sheepishly.

"Well… I _may_ have slipped horse tranquilizers into her protein shake one morning before she went off to train…"

"You then went and defaced her with sharpies." Mercy flatly added.

"Hey, that wasn't just me. Santos and Zenyatta joined in on that." Mad Dawg said defensively, before eating some of the meal before him. After a little bit of small talk around the table, things seemed okay.

"So, I was going to make potato salad, but apparently there's a rule against it now or something?" Mad Dawg asked amused. Torbjörn just sighed.

"A few years ago, there was an… incident." He began with a grave tone in his voice. "Mistake were made, bonds were broken, and it all came down to that potato salad. Henceforth, we have banned it from thanksgiving."

"What about Christmas?" Mad Dawg almost immediately asked.

"Oh, that's fine." Torbjörn said dismissively with a wave.

"So, you said you were a wanderer… I take it things aren't perfect at home?" Gordon asked. Mad Dawg's face dropped to one of scorn and his eye twitched slightly.

"Gordon!" Maja snapped, angered.

"You could say that." Mad Dawg growled in response.

"Family issues?"

"Why the hell do you wanna know?" Mad Dawg snapped in a low tone.

"Calm down man, I'm just talking." Gordon retorted.

"Well, if were just 'talking' let me put it bluntly, I'm the bastard son of a Tal-" Mad Dawg scowled.

"Mad Dawg!" Mercy exclaimed shocked, cutting him off.

"What?!" He retorted. "I ain't using that term wrong! You know it! I never even knew my dad! Let alone anyone else for a long while!"

While most of the people present had no idea what was going on, they could tell it was best to let this go. Mad Dawg could tell Mercy got his point. It made her feel bad, but she got it. Mad Dawg shook his head and went back to his food.

"I'm sorry…" He muttered. "I… I went too far there. I'm sorry. But to make a long story short, I don't really know much about my birth family. I lived with the Dedsec group I mentioned earlier, but… Yeah. I don't wanna talk about this."

"Right. I'm sorry man." Gordon replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "Didn't uh…"

"Forget it man. Let's just move forward." Mad dawg said dismissively before the two fit-bumped across the table.

"Could I please get a bread roll?" One of the kids asked form the other end of the table., a little nervous at the exchange that just happened.

"Yeet!" Mad Dawg called, throwing a bread roll and landing it on the kid's plate before anyone could stop him. "Woo! I was half expecting to peg the kid in the head with that."

"That would've been… bad." Torbjörn began but stopped when he saw the look his wife was giving him. Mad Dawg just shot him a slight laugh.

"Is Mad Dawg a code name?" Isabelle asked after a few moments of silence, MD looked down at her and chuckled.

"Believe it or not, it's my real name." Mad Dawg replied with a shrug.

"I _still_ find that hard to believe." Torbjörn agreed. "For the first week or so when you arrived at the base, we had a bet going as to what your real name was."

"Okay, first. How many bets have you guys had about me? Second, how much have you won? I'm curious, and C, what did you think my name was?"

"Well, I can't say for sure how many bets were made, I lost ten bucks to Hanzo because of the name one, and my guess was Clay, Thomas, Xavier or Daniel, something along those lines."

"Well, I need to thank Hanzo for having my back… and Daniel? Well, okay I guess." Mad Dawg shrugged with a chuckle. He took a sip form his drink before noticing Brigitte was on her third or fourth. "You uh… you okay there?"

"I come from a family of iron sobriety! I'll be fine!" She said dismissively.

"I have a video from a Christmas party that begs to differ." Mad Dawg muttered under a laugh.

"What does so..ber…eyety mean?" Isabelle asked innocently.

"I'll tell you later." Mad Dawg replied.

Taking some more mashed potatoes, the conversation returned to normal. Mad Dawg was thankful that things seemed to calm down. After a few minutes of delicious food, Ingrid brushed some hair away from her face and looked at the two with a slight smile.

"So… are you two… ahem." Ingrid began before clearing her throat.

"Are we what?" Mad Dawg asked, oblivious to the question.

"Are you two, well…" She tried to find the right words to the question.

"I don't follow." Mad Dawg replied.

"Well, how long have you two known each other?" She asked, trying to re-phrase her question.

"Uh… I dunno? Like, less than a month. Three weeks at most." Mad Dawg thought it over. Brigitte looked at her mother in confusion before she jerked her head slightly to Mad Dawg, and Brigitte's eyes widened slightly.

"I think she's trying to ask if you two are-"

"Oh, we're not dating mom." Brigitte shook her head with a smile, realizing what she was implying.

"Wait. You think… _we're_ dating?" Mad Dawg asked bewildered. "Us?"

"No, we're not dating…" Brigitte shook her head.

"Too bad." Reinhardt commented before taking a drink. Making Mad Dawg glare at him.

"I don't like you now." Mad Dawg said with narrowed eyes.

"As Hana would say, I ship it." The crusader added regardless.

"Y'know, you're lucky this food is amazing, otherwise you'd be long gone…"

"Look, we're just friends. We just shared a cabin was all… and some other stuff." She ended with a suggestive tone in her voice.

The adult's eyes widened in shock and Torb's narrowed in anger as they all looked at Mad Dawg and Brigitte. Some of the older kids caught the implications of what she had said, but the younger ones (and Mad Dawg) didn't.

"Yeah, I ran outta toothpaste about two days in… Don't know what happened to it." Mad Dawg added, still oblivious to what they were implying.

"And more than that." Brigitte tried to egg Mad Dawg on, who just looked at her confused.

"The Lúcio-Oh's? Mad Dawg asked, still not getting what she was trying to say.

"No!" Brigitte rolled her eyes. "Do you not remember?"

"The marshmallows at the campfire? What are you talking about?!" Mad Dawg asked, genuinely confused now. The adults were having a hard time telling who was lying here, Brigitte or Mad Dawg. However, they could also tell that Brigitte was desperately trying not to laugh, so they all quickly realized she was screwing with him.

"I don't get it!" He asked bewildered. "Your AC unit was busted, you couldn't fix it, so you crashed on my couch!" He looked around at the adults for an answer, and after look at their faces for a moment, his face turned to one of realization, then shock, then slight disgust. "Hang on. Are you asking if we fuc-"

"Alright!" Brigitte exclaimed, cutting him off before laughing. When she saw his confused look, she added: "I'm just joking Dawg."

"Right." He said before looking to the others. "Swear to anything, _nothing_ happened."

By now, most of the kids and some of the adults were laughing and Mad Dawg sighed with a shake of his head, still unsure how to react.

"I thought you were smarter than that!" Brigitte laughed.

"Ha. Ha." Mad Dawg muttered. "Funny."

"Don't you remember?" Brigitte added, clearly joking, but the alcohol not really helping. "That one wonderful night?"

"Brigitte." Ingrid said, trying to get her daughter's attention.

"It was magical Dawg. Don't you remember? Or is your little doggy brain too focused on squirrels?" By now, most of the kids were laughing uncontrollably, and Mad Dawg was really annoyed.

"Yeah I remember. You mean the one night when you were nearly sacrificed and I had to save your ass? Yeah, I remember that. And y'know, I should've _let_ that cult sacrifice you…" Mad Dawg scowled. Only for the sound of dozens of dropped silverware to fill the large room, as all eyes turned to the mutant and the mechanic. Some looked in confusion, most looked in shock and some looked in anger.

Well, Torbjörn looked _pissed_ to be honest.

 **You done goofed.**

"I'm sorry. _WHAT?_ " Ingrid finally managed to get out shocked beyond words. Brigitte seemed to turn so white she'd be running a social justice blog on Tumblr, and Mad Dawg looked confused to her, seeing her shock and genuine fear.

"Did… did you not _tell_ them?" He asked, Brigitte, raising a brow.

When Brigitte didn't answer, Mad Dawg realized what was going on and burst out laughing uncontrollably, laughing so hard he fell off of his chair and onto the ground. It took him a full two minutes to finally drag himself up, despite still laughing. He looked at Brigitte and burst out laughing all over again, falling back to the ground he was in tears as everyone at the table was shocked at his reaction, and most of them wanted answers.

"No! No freaking way! Holy crap!" Mad Dawg wheezed. "No… Oh… Wow… I'm sorry… Actually… No I'm not… Oh man… this… this is the WORST possible way to hear about this! Ahahahahahahahaha! THIS IS THE GREATEST THING EVER!"

"Explain. _Now_." Torbjörn growled, genuine anger in his voice, scaring Brigitte even more.

"Okay." Mad Dawg nodded, finally getting a hold of himself and pulling himself back up. "This wasn't her fault okay?" Taking a deep breath, he began. "I feel like everyone needs some context, a few months ago, I went to Forrest Valley to… get away from work, while there, I ended up being in a cabin right next to Brigitte. As far as I knew, she was just another person crashing at Forrest valley."

There were some surprised looks until Torbjörn spoke up, genuinely confused.

"You didn't know who she was? How?"

"Well, first of all, I was using a fake name, so she didn't know who I was at first either. Second, I never asked for her last name, so I just assumed she was a civvie. Third, while you had brought up that you had a daughter, I never met her."

"That's true." Brigitte added, finding her voice. "For the past year, I had been off at school, then I was on, um, the mission."

"Yeah, and even if you had an idea as to who I was, I had grown a bit of a beard, so, I didn't look the same."

"Alright… But what was this _cult_?"

"So, the guy running the place was this dude named Twig, he was… nice."

"Right…" Brigitte muttered under her breath with a roll of her eyes.

"Look, ignoring what he did later on… He was a good friend." Mad Dawg countered, looking at Brigitte. "Maybe he was just manipulating me like pretty much everyone else… but whatever. We started to get along, and he was a nice guy. He was an idiot, no way around it, but he at least _seemed_ nice."

"That or he was so high all the time he didn't see what was happening around him." Brigitte muttered again. "He yelled 'I am the lord of the doors' and then ran into a door at your cabin."

"Yeah, that would explain a few things." Mad Dawg concurred. "Anyhow, there's this weird plant that grows around the valley, they call it the Blue Star." At the mention of that Mercy's eyes widened even as she ate. "I take it you know what they are?"

"Yes, I can't recall their real name, but they are used in making a highly addictive drug."

"Not exactly." Mad Dawg shook his head. "The plant itself is the drug. You so much as touch em' and the chemicals get absorbed through your pores, make you see a lot of weird sh-stuff." He caught himself, realizing Isabelle was sitting to his right. "Anyhow, it turns out that Twig and some of the others at this place are pretty much addicted to eating these plants. One of the side effects is auditory hallucinations, so they start hearing, and I quote 'The Word of God' so they start this cult worshipping this voice. Then it turned out they had _somehow_ found a truck full of Talon weapons-" Mad Dawg paused when he saw the shocked and horrified looks from everyone present. "I'm not joking. Anyhow, Talon showed up and this cult mistook one of their agents as their…" Mad Dawg began laughing again. "I'm sorry… I need a sec." After a few deep breaths, Mad Dawg shook his head with a wide grin and added. "They though she was their goddess."

Most of the Lindholms didn't know how to react. Isabelle seemed fascinated by the story Mad Dawg was telling about him and her aunt, Ingrid was shocked beyond words, Torbjörn was surprised that _this_ is what had happened over the past month or so, and finally, Reinhardt began laughing. Because of course he did.

"They believed… they believed a Talon agent was a GODDESS?" He finally asked between laughs.

"Yeah. Widowmaker." Mad Dawg smirked. He stifled a laugh and then Reinhardt stifled a laugh, and then they saw the flustered look on Ingrid's face and they lost it. Even Torbjörn, who was shocked and somewhat angered, couldn't help but give a slight laugh at the idea.

"Oh geez… I never realized how stupid that sounded…" Mad Dawg laughed, finally getting himself calmed down. "So, Talon showed up one night, and these guys thought 'Oh hey, our goddess is here. Let's sacrifice someone!' and Brigitte and I got dragged into it."

"How?!" Ingrid demanded, startling some of the kids. She unlike everyone else, wasn't laughing.

"Well, Twig and I became friends as the days went on, and he wanted me to join their cult. They chose Brigitte because…" Mad Dawg trailed off, thinking it over before shrugging. "I dunno. Plot convenience? Skorch didn't really have much of a plan there. But regardless, I woke up in the cathedral thing they had built underground-" As Gordon was about to ask a question Mad Dawg simply answered: "Don't question it man. I don't get it either and I was _there_."

"Mad Dawg showed up in the middle of the ceremony and things got… weird." Brigitte continued the story, finally finding her voice. "Turns out they want Mad Dawg to be her-"

" **DON'T YOU FREAKING SAY IT!"** Mad Dawg suddenly snapped, genuine anger in his tone, which only made Brigitte grin.

"They wanted him to be her husband."

Upon saying that, the entire room burst into gales of laughter. Even those who were weary of Mad Dawg couldn't help but laugh at the sheer absurdness of what they were just told. And they didn't need to ask if she was telling the truth or not, the look on Mad Dawg's face said it all. After the laughter died down, Mad Dawg continued.

"Yeah, it gets _worse_." He smiled wickedly. "Turns out the cult is called 'the Tillbedare av sopor' which translates to 'Worshippers of Trash'."

He barely finished his sentence before everyone (Ingrid and Mercy included) started laughing uncontrollably again. The kids were absolutely losing it at this point, Maja and Gordon were trying to collect themselves (Gordon feeling bad for his little sister mainly), and even the adults were still laughing.

"Believe it or not, it gets _worse_ _._ " Mad Dawg laughed. "See, they were worshipping Widowmaker, a Talon assassin, whom they reffered to as the 'Göttin des Mülls'." He said with a flourish, waving his hands as if it had great importance. "Turns out that translates to 'Goddess of Garbage'."

This time, the laughter was even louder.

"Hang on, hang on." Reinhardt managed to get out between laughs. "How did they ever come up with those names?!"

"Well, a side effect of the Blue Star is auditory hallucinations, and speaking in other languages for some reason." Brigitte explained. "My guess is they were trying to say 'Goddess of Beauty' or 'Worshippers of Truth' but due to their intoxicated states, it came across differently."

"So naturally, after seeing someone as _loved_ as me, a firefight broke out." Mad Dawg said with a roll of his eyes, continuing his story but forgetting how to most people, a firefight expert was kind of a huge deal. "And that's when I found out who Brigitte really was." After a pause, Mad Dawg laughed slightly then sighed, shaking his head. "Long story short, Talon got driven out, and Twig realized what was happening, turns out that Talon was manipulating him, and in his drugged-up state, he didn't realize what was _really_ happening, he thought he was hallucinating the entire thing and giving the crates back to their rightful owner. He literally had no idea he had started a cult, or the crates of what he thought were bananas were actually guns. So, with that being said, don't do drugs kids."

After he finished his story, the room fell into silence, thinking over what they had heard, some were shocked, some were amazed, and some were trying to wrap their heads around who Mad Dawg was, let alone this whole cult story. But one thing was clear, he wasn't lying.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Ingrid asked, looking to her daughter.

"Because… because I asked her not to." Mad Dawg spoke up again.

"Why?"

"Forrest Valley was built as a safe haven for people and Omnics." Brigitte began. "Twig's grandfather built it during the Omnic Crisis, he didn't care who someone was, only that they needed help. He passed it on to Twig's father and then he onto Twig. Twig may have been an idiot, he may have tried to kill me, but in his defense, he didn't _know_ what he was doing. And if we brought everyone in, they'd close the place down. Twig would lose everything he had, and all the good that place did? It would all be for nothing."

"Why did you do all that?" Isabelle asked, shocked and somewhat scared by what she had just heard. "W..why did you run headlong into a fight that could've killed you?"

"Simple, someone was in danger. I can't just watch someone innocent get hurt, not again." Mad Dawg replied in a calm, yet determined tone. "There's not enough people willing to do the right thing, even if it means getting shot."

There was a long silence, the kids thinking it over, Ingrid still seemed very uneasy, and Torbjörn was deep in thought. Finally, Reinhardt spoke up:

"I believe you did the right thing."

"I hope so." Mad Dawg shook his head with a sigh. "After all, after all the crap I did you guys were willing to give me another chance, it'd be wrong to blame Twig for what happened."

"What happened to the Talon agents?" One of the kids asked.

"Beat em' up, chased em' off." Mad Dawg answered with a hint of pride in his voice, not wanting to admit to the bloodbath he caused. "Turns out when a guy comes running at you with a chainsaw and shotgun shells to the face don't kill him, people tend to lose confidence in their odds of survival."

"Hold on. You can't survive a shotgun shell to the face!" Someone spoke up, surprised.

"Yeah, I can." Mad Dawg smugly replied. "Surviving deadly wounds is kinda my thing."

"Well, you're not wrong in that regard." Torbjörn agreed, not seeming nearly as angered as he had been earlier, in fact, he seemed a lot more like when Mad Dawg had first met him, there was even some respect in his eyes. "How many times have you get shot to pieces and yet come back?"

"Aw geez… There was that time in chapter one, chapter four, heck, I had my heart ripped out for about seven hours that one time." Mad Dawg listed off just a few of the times he had been battered and bruised. "Heck, I jumped off the roof at the Gibraltar base last Christmas."

"I remember that." Torbjörn chuckled. "We all assumed you were still smashed form the contest earlier."

"Wasn't drunk, just wanted to see what would happen." Mad Dawg shook his head before taking a drink.

"You fell nearly eighty feet! How did you survive that!?" Mercy asked bewildered. "Your abilities aside, the physical damage to your body-"

"Ms. Ziegler, you saw what happened to me after Reaper blew all my insides out. As far as I know, there's only really two ways to kill me." Mad Dawg stated matter-of-factly. "I've had Reinhardt play human baseball with me and his giant hammer. And let me tell you, being hit by that is a _lot_ more painful than you'd expect."

"I thought we agreed not to speak of that!" Reinhardt exclaimed.

"I wasn't gonna talk about ninety percent of the things I've said here today." Mad Dawg commented, glaring over at Brigitte.

"Well, if there's one thing I've learned from you, it's that there are some things you just don't question." Torbjörn added, taking another bite of the turkey. "Your healing factor happens to be one of those things we just don't question at this point."

"True that." Brigitte smirked.

"So, you're a superhero?" One of the kids asked wide-eyed. Mad Dawg laughed at the question.

"Ironically, yes." He nodded. "That's another story though."

"So… We heard you left for some reason. What happened there?" One of the kids asked. Mercy, Reinhardt, Torbjörn and Mad Dawg all exchanged a weary glance.

"Well, I believe that Mad Dawg has his reasons…" Ingrid began, trying to steer the conversation away form that question.

"That's personal." Mad Dawg simply answered. "It also deals with a lot of people, and they've said they don't want me talking about it. It's… weird to say the least." He cast a glance over to Mercy who nodded. There were some murmurs of agreements and everyone went back to eating. Signing in relief, knowing that he wasn't about to be killed by Torbjörn or his wife just yet, Mad Dawg ate some turkey and his eyes lit up.

"Wow this is good!" he commented. "If I'd known you're cooking was so good, Id've saved your daughter _years_ ago!"

That got a good laugh form everyone at the table and Ingrid smiled at Mad Dawg, beginning to see the side that she had first heard about, happy that (or so she assumed) her husband and Mad Dawg's bad blood was gone, or at least mostly dealt with.

"Well, I will admit, seeing you turn into a giant, wolf-like creature was a sight to behold." Brigitte commented, eating some turkey. Only after she had said that did she see Mad Dawg's eyes twitch and anger etched into his features.

 _THEY AREN'T SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT THAT._ He was practically screaming at her. _WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?_

 _YOU TOO SKORCH!_

 **Lol come at me Dawg Bro.**

 _I WILL._

 **I'll drop a twenty-foot-tall-nine-headed-fifteen-tailed-scorpion on you right now.**

Actually, that would be pretty cool.

 _SHUT UP!_

"Really?" He dryly said.

" _Crap."_ Brigitte realized.

"You're a werewolf?" Isabelle asked innocently.

"Uh…" Mad Dawg said with a mouthful of turkey.

"That's enough dear." Torbjörn said, trying to help Mad Dawg hide something.

"That's so cool!" Another kid exclaimed.

"Can you show us?!" Another asked.

"That's enough children." Ingrid said in a kind but stern tone. "I'm sure that Mr. Kace is joking, and-"

"Sure." Mad Dawg sighed with a shrug. "What the hell."

The whole room went silent. Shocked by the answer.

"Wait. What?"

"Dawg, that's a TERRIBLE idea." Brigitte said, her eyes widening. "Last time you did it…"

"A bunch of Talon goons got badly wounded, big deal. I was pissed off when that happened. Besides, I've already crossed the line I promised myself I wouldn't cross at least 14 times so far this meal because of you. What's one more?"

"So… you're saying you can control it?"

"No. I'm saying I feel like I have a _reason_ to control it this time. Also, YOU brought this up, so any bloodshed is your fault." He commented standing up. "I'd start praying to God if I were you."

Brigitte wanted to answer, but felt like her throat froze shut, leaving her unable to speak. Torbjörn raised a brow at Mad Dawg, who shrugged as if to say _'Yeah, sure dude.'_

"I'd be interested in seeing this… other form you speak of." Reinhardt commented.

"You're not helping!" Mercy snapped, clearly not liking where this was going. She was the only one present who had prior knowledge of Mad Dawg's… other side. And while she wasn't one hundred percent sure if it was even _real,_ the idea of what Moira had done to him terrified her.

"Brigitte, it's fine!" Mad Dawg called form the other room. "If anyone wants to see this, come outside."

The kids (and some of the adults) looked at one another then got up and headed out. Leaving a confused Ingrid, a worried Mercy, and a flustered Brigitte.

"Damn it…" She scowled.

"He… he's joking, right?" Ingrid commented, still bewildered by what was happening.

"Nope." Reinhardt commented. "Mad Dawg's a lot of things, but he's far from a storyteller."

"Then what was he doing for the past hour?" Torbjörn asked as the two left the room.

"Recapping and positive distortion."

"This is going to end poorly…" Brigitte moaned as she followed them.

As everyone filed out into the back yard, Mad Dawg could be heard inhaling, then coughing. Smoke wafting around his head.

"Aye…" He muttered.

"What are you doing?" Maja asked.

"Oh, uh… Hanzo… a dude form work, he recommended this herbal meditation stuff… to help me like, control this thing, wanted to see if it could work. If you want some, let me know." Pinching the bridge of his nose he sighed before addressing everyone. "So, listen, this isn't going to be pretty. If you don't like the sound of snapping bones, you may wanna cover your ears. Oh, one other thing." Mad Dawg paused and pulled a gun out and loaded it with something before cocking it and tossing it to Torbjörn. "Anything goes wrong, empty the clip into me, they're tranq-bullets. One would be enough to take me down, but trust me, it ain't worth riskin' it."

"Alright." Torbjörn nodded, understanding the warning but still skeptical as to what was really going on.

Mad Dawg exhaled nervously, looking at everyone watching before shutting his eyes and chanting: "Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme! C'mon cells, it's mutant time!" Before striking his jaw with a palm strike. He felt something stir inside him, as if the animal was beginning to awaken. He just spat blood in annoyance as everyone seemed shocked that Mad Dawg just punched himself in the face.

"Agh! Damn it!" He spat. He inhaled and hit himself again in the jaw, this time an audible ' _Crack!'_ was heard followed by a deep snarl. Mad Dawg's head seem to twist side-to-side in anger, his eye turning completely black for a moment.

"NO!" Mad Dawg bellowed in a deep tone.

"Oh, come on your furry pansy!" Mad Dawg scowled.

"Is… Is this normal?" Maja asked bewildered.

"I can't say." Brigitte shook her head.

Mad Dawg then violently clawed at his arms, drawing blood and then slamming his fists onto the ground, the creature within finally coming to the light. His pupils went small for a few moments, and then his hands began reforming into their paw/claw mix as the fur began growing on his arms. Looking up his face began contorting as his jaw cracked and stretched outwards, his teeth chipping away and reforming into their jagged form. Mad Dawg snarled and slammed the ground in front of him, his claws digging into the ground, he could feel his bones snapping and re-arranging themselves, it hurt, a lot. His drooling, twisted face snapped up and looked at the Lindholms. Without so much as a second thought, Torbjörn aimed his tranq gun at him.

"Wait! This is normal. I think." Brigitte said, stopping him from shooting.

Everyone continued watching in shock as Mad Dawg's back seeming to arch somewhat, his bones growing thicker and his legs changing into their animalistic form. His entire body began growing fur, covering what currently had none. Mad Dawg was now left in his quadrupedal animalistic form, his fingers became their long claw forms as Mad Dawg roared in anger one last time as his head and skeleton finished re-forming before howling into the sky, having transformed. He slowly turned and looked at the Lindholms, a low snarl emitting form his mouth. There was a noticeable, blood-red 'T' that began above his eyes, going around to his temples on his forehead and came down the middle of his face, making it clear who created him, who owned him. The creature looked around him, as if confused as to where he was, then sat back on his hind legs and looked at the family in front of him.

"There you have it." He said in his deep, twisted voice. However, no one reacted, they all stared in silent shock at the creature that stood before them. Mad Dawg's deep breathing was all that could be heard.

"My God…" Torbjörn finally breathed. Realized this is what Mad Dawg was living with for so long. Isabelle peaked out from behind Ingrid in surprise at the beast that stood before them. Walking on all fours he slowly made his way towards the people watching before stopping, seeing the tranq gun and tilted his head to one side, as if silently asking a question.

"So, this is what you become? This is what you…" Reinhardt began asking with a slight sputter, amazed at what he had seen.

"Mmm." Mad Dawg grumbled with a nod, remaining still. There wasn't the usual anger and blinding fury that came with this form, just silence.

By now, more than a few of the Lindholm children had all moved around him to try and get a better look, but they were too scared to get close. Mad Dawg turned himself, looking around almost instinctively, as if expecting he was going to be attacked. Finally, Isabelle slowly walked forward towards Mad Dawg who looked down at her puzzled.

"Isabelle, what are you doing?!" Her mother asked, slightly scared. No, downright terrified.

Mad Dawg looked at her, his jagged teeth still clear and his claws out, but for some reason, he didn't see fear in her eyes. Instead, there was…

Wonder.

The small girl looked up with her large emerald eyes and slowly reached a hand forward. Mad Dawg heard the hammer cock on the tranq gun but didn't move, he very slowly got down to her level and looked her in the eyes. Slowly she reached her hand out and Mad Dawg backed up, instincts kicking in. His ears pointed back and his eyes narrowed as he tried to understand what was happening. Slowly she came closer to Mad Dawg, and he didn't move this time. But he noticeably tensed as she rubbed her hand against his fur. After a few moments, there was a low noise as Mad Dawg seemed to lean into the contact, the intensity in his eyes seeming to dissipate. He calmly lay down and exhaled through his nostrils, making it clear he wasn't going to attack anyone. Everyone present seemed shocked, and after a few moments some of the other kids came forward. Some with fear, and some with curiosity, to feel what Mad Dawg's fur felt like. Mad Dawg sighed, understanding that this was going to happen. He simply lay on the ground, letting everyone feel his fur and scratch him. He'd be lying if he said it didn't feel nice, in a weird way mind you, but still nice. And for the first time, he didn't hate being in this beast form. Eventually Brigitte, Reinhardt, Torbjörn and even Ingrid and Mercy came over in amazement to see the aftermath of Mad Dawg's transformation.

"I… This… This isn't possible…" Mercy whispered aloud. "This wasn't supposed to be…"

"This is amazing!" Reinhardt said aloud, getting down on one knee and slowly rubbing his hand on Mad Dawg's fur. It was soft and thick. It lacked the feeling of hair, and more a feeling of fur.

"I wasn't expecting this…" Ingrid commented, still a little uneasy, but feeling somewhat more confident as she saw how he was trying to be calm around the kids. Honestly, she was never sure what to expect when friends of her husband (or daughter) came over, and she had seen a lot. But a werewolf-like creature? This was not something she expected.

"How long have you known about this?" Mercy asked, getting down to look at his face. She was noticeably pale, as if she was confronting a demon from a nightmare.

"About four or five months." Mad Dawg growled in a low tone, trying to keep the conversation between the two of them.

"I…I…"

"We'll talk. Later." Mad Dawg simply said, making it clear it was hard for him to talk in this form.

By now, more of the kids seem to have shaken the feeling of fear and were now petting, scratching or just looking at Mad Dawg. Before Ingrid could tell them to get off, a few of the kids had climbed onto Mad Dawg's back, and the beast stood up, cracked his knuckles on the ground and began running around the backyard. It was hard to tell what Mad Dawg was thinking or feeling currently, but the kids were clearly loving it. The loud thumping of his hands and feet hitting the ground could be heard amongst the sound of leaves flying and cheering as he came to a stop. A few of the kid's slid off and a few more climbed on and Mad Dawg shot off like a rocket once again. But this time it was clear Mad Dawg was enjoying it.

"Well, they seem to be having fun." Brigitte smiled.

"Let's just hope he dosen't lick any of them." Reinhardt commented.

"Indeed, he may need to be fixed is he does that…" Torbjörn added.

"I can't believe you two!" Mercy snapped, her face going red. Clearly miffed at their comments. Torbjörn and Reinhardt just high-fived, knowing they had succeeded in what they were trying to achieve.

After Mad Dawg did a few more laps he turned and looked at Torbjörn, who raised a brow confused before realizing what he was waiting for.

"No, I'm good." He said, raising his hand and claw hand and trying to back away, only for Mad Dawg to walk towards him. Reinhardt seemed to realize what was going on and grabbed Torbjörn with one hand and hoisted him onto Mad Dawg's back.

"I hate you both." The engineer commented before Mad Dawg took off once again. Torbjörn was left holding tighter to Mad Dawg's fur than he intended, but since he only had one hand and he had no idea if Mad Dawg was even in control, he felt like he needed to hold on tight. But quickly the fear disappeared and replaced with an adrenaline rush. Mad Dawg drifted around a corner before taking off once again, and this time, Torbjörn was loving it.

"Woo hoo hoo!" He yelled, his claw arm up in the air. Mad Dawg kept running back towards the group, as he approached, he used his claws as breaks and came to a skidding stop.

"I won't lie. That was pretty awesome." Torbjörn admitted as he slid of Mad Dawg's back. Mad Dawg shook himself before giving what seemed like a smile.

"Well, I believe desert is ready, if you'd all like to come back inside." Ingrid said aloud, getting everyone's attention, and slowly people began making their way back into the house. A few moments later everyone seemed to realize that the giant wolf-creature may be an issue.

It was.

Mad Dawg had enough trouble just getting in through the door, and then found he physically couldn't sit down on the chair again. There were some laughs as Mad Dawg tried (and failed) to sit in the chair, before sitting next to the table, with just the top half of his head appearing over the table. Isabelle tried to give him some pie and then they found not having working hands was another issue, and Mad Dawg didn't want to make a mess by eating like, well, a dog. Ultimately, he and Brigitte went back outside, and Brigitte shot him. There was the sound of a _very_ angryroar, and then a 'Thump!' Brigitte came back in and sat back down, taking a slice of pie.

"Dawg'll be fine." She explained. "According to him, tranquilizing him helps him take control again… I don't know how, but he seems to know what he's doing."

"He doesn't." Reinhardt and Torbjörn said at the same time.

After about eight or so minutes, the sound of several disgusting _cracks!_ were heard and the sounds of muffled groans of pain. Mercy excused herself and went to assist Mad Dawg, who saw struggling to get up. She knelt down and activated her healing stream (having made it routine to bring her staff with her after 'The Incident' two years ago).

"Thanks." He groaned, managing to turn himself over onto his back. Mercy grimaced when she saw how twisted his right leg was, his ankle almost folding in on itself on top of his leg being twisted like a pretzel. She then struggled to keep her meal down when it suddenly spun in an unnatural way, reverting to its natural position. "Still not used to this…"

"I'm so sorry Kace." Mercy said, her tone clearly upset. "I had no idea you were suffering through this."

"Don't be." Mad Dawg shook his head. "Like I said, until recently, I didn't know this was a thing. When I was young, I felt something inside me once or twice, and a few times my strength increased sporadically, but I always assumed it was just a dopamine thing… I never expected _this_ to be what was happening inside me."

"Yes, but I-"

"Left. Tried to get me help." Mad Dawg cut her off. "Ms. Zeigler, please. Don't blame yourself." Mad Dawg sighed before pulling himself up. "If anything, most of this is my fault. But we've already had this conversation."

"I know… I'm sorry."

"It's fine Aunt Ziegler…" Mad Dawg murmured, the last of his body twisting into its normal form, and in his tired and pained phase he didn't realize what he had said. Mercy's gave a slight gasp then her face reddened at the comment. "Crap… I didn't…" Mad Dawg's eyes closed and he suddenly passed out, the fur receding and his hands finally changing back to normal. Mercy smiled and got up, not sure of what to do.

A few minutes later, Mad Dawg's eyes opened and he groaned. Standing up shakily he looked down, seeing he was finally back to normal. Over to the side were his clothes, thankfully as currently he wasn't wearing a shirt. Cracking his neck, he walked back into the house and back to the dining hall.

"Hey." He commented.

"Wait… how did you change back?!" One of the kids asked bewildered.

"I don't know. Neither does Skorch. We're leaving it at that." Mad Dawg said sitting back down.

"Who's Skorch?"

"Someone I know. Again, leaving it at that."

Later that night, the kids were all playing a game in the basement, Angela and Mercy were finishing cleaning up (Mad Dawg had dealt with a large amount of the dishes) and was currently debating if it was time to bail. However, as he was walking by a balcony, he saw Torbjörn relaxing on it and sighed, knowing this was inevitable. Walking out to it he felt a calm fall breeze on his face.

"Hey." He said awkwardly as he walked out.

"Oh, hello." Torbjörn replied, noticing the mutant walking out.

"Your wife's cooking is _amazing_." Mad Dawg said, trying to start a conversation.

"If you think that's good, you should try her meatballs and macaroni." Torbjörn said, nodding in agreement.

Then there was-

 _Oh, not again…_

An awkward silence.

 _C'mon man!_

"Listen, this should be pretty obvious by now, but I still feel like I should tell you myself. I'm sorry." Mad Dawg began, his tone somber, not as sad as one would expect. "The things I said to you a few months back… I had no right to say those things. I have no excuse, no reason to have said that. And genuinely, I'm so sorry."

Torbjörn didn't respond, Mad Dawg was unsure if he was thinking, or surprised that Mad Dawg decided to bring this up.

"It's funny… When I first showed up here, you, McCree and Lúcio just, well, accepted me. I don't know if you'll understand this, but it felt… amazing." Mad Dawg continued. "This teen just shows up, gets shot to s**t and you guys go 'Cool, welcome to the team.' It just… felt… nice. To finally belong somewhere again."

"This may be an inappropriate question, but did you ever regret it?" Torbjörn asked.

"The things I said, or things I did? In either case, Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded sadly. "In the heat of the moment and the after math, it didn't really hit me just what I had said. But after things calmed down… Everything hit. I just woke up one morning and had this 'Holy crap… I _said_ that…' moment that never left. Same could be said for what I did years ago. I tried to let it go, to move on, but I couldn't. I'm normally really happy, probably happier than I should be, and I like that. But every now and then… The ghosts just take hold. The only thing that hurt more was the fact that I believed I could never go back. That you guys would kill me if I ever showed my face again."

"Admittedly, Jack didn't help much in that regard." Torbjörn dryly commented.

"Yeah, but I don't blame him." Mad Dawg agreed. "I ghost them, start supposedly leaving a trail of corpses everywhere I go, I start working with Sombra, refuse to give a straight answer, it wasn't like I wasn't _acting_ sketchy."

"But it was hard to tell if this was your normal sketchy, or a different type." The engineer chuckled, shooting a smirk over at Mad Dawg who laughed in response.

"Yeah. Still. It dosen't change what I did or said, but for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

Torbjörn nodded and then took a drink form his beer.

"And I want to thank you." He added, surprising Mad Dawg.

"For what?"

"Seriously? Mad Dawg, you saved my daughter! You fought your way through a damn cult ritual to save my daughter from being killed and then fought your way through Talon agents without knowing who she was! Even if you hadn't returned and tried your damndest to make amends I still would have owed you that thanks for saving her."

Mad Dawg looked down and smiled, realizing that yeah, he had done that.

"It's funny, after I left, I didn't stop being a hero."

"I have to ask, how hot was that phoenix costume?" Torbjörn asked, having heard about Mad Dawg's feathery escapades.

"Oh, hotter than McCree's chili!" Mad Dawg answered exasperated. "The first time I wore it, I forgot to punch holes in the mask and actually _passed out_ whole flying!" Torbjörn burst out laughing at that comment. "Yeah, and I woke up half-way through a billboard. A man's sports brief billboard…"

Torbjörn didn't mean to, but he laughed even harder at the comment. Mad Dawg sighed and took out his phone (one of many) and opened the camera roll. He showed Torb a picture of him in the phoenix costume indeed halfway through a billboard… in the middle of a pair of boxer briefs. There was a caption which simply read 'How did this happen? Let me be brief… #Punsivegotem #Pleasedontsharethis #CrimsonPheonix4Life #420YoloSwag4Jesus'.

"Not my proudest moment." Mad Dawg commented. Jumping onto the balcony, he sat down with his legs hanging over the balcony. After Torbjörn calmed down he just chuckled and looked at Dawg. "By the way, sorry for scarring kids for life."

"Honestly, I think they thought it was cool."

"I can't tell if that's good, or if they should seek counseling." Mad Dawg quipped.

"If anyone should, it's you Dawg." Torbjörn retorted.

"Yeah. True. You know one?" Mad Dawg asked tiredly.

"Emily's one."

"Huh…" Mad Dawg mused, thinking it over.

"Regardless, thank you." Torbjörn restated his point.

"Thanks." Mad Dawg nodded. "Listen, I've gotta duck out for a minute, there's… someone else I need to see."

"No problem, any idea when you'll be ba-" Torbjörn replied, looking away but stopped mid-sentence when he saw Mad Dawg was gone. "Huh."

Meanwhile, Mad Dawg landed in Mexicali, looking around he checked the mailboxes until he found one with a specific number. Looking at a scrap of paper Mercy had given him, he finally found the right house. The paint seemed somewhat faded but it was no less energetic than Torb's. His legs began knocking as he walked up the pathway to the house. From inside, the sounds of cheering and music could be heard. Mad Dawg sighed and then knocked on the door. The music didn't stop but he could hear someone coming. Finally, the door opened and Mad Dawg looked surprised at the man he had met about a week ago on the road after leaving Forrest Valley.

"Uh… hey kid." The man said, somewhat awkwardly. "Can I help you?" He seemed to recognize Mad Dawg, but also couldn't seem to place _where_ he had seen him.

"I'm looking for Tiana Baja." Mad Dawg answered. The man paused then leaned back into the house.

"Hey T! There's a kid here to see you!" The man called before standing to the side. After a few moments, a woman came to the door.

"Who are you?" She asked, getting right to the point.

" _I'm your husband's science fair experiment."_ Ran through Mad Dawg's head, it then hit him there was no good way to answer that question.

"My name's Mad Dawg." Mad Dawg introduced himself. "I… I was created by your husband."

Tiana and the man stared in shock before Tiana stepped outside and closed the door.

"Now you listen to me, I don't know what kind of depraved joke this is or who put you up to this, but Jackson is dead and-"

"I'm Beta-576." Mad Dawg quietly interrupted. "The project Jax was working on years ago."

Tiana just raised a brow, thinking it over, then something seemed to hit her all at once.

"No… no, no… nonononononononononoNO! Jax said it failed! That is was terminated that it-" She stammered, clearly shocked by what he had said, let alone the fact that he was standing in front of her.

"I escaped." Mad Dawg said. "Escaped nearly a decade ago and went on my own way. I only regained my memories a few months ago." To prove his point, Mad Dawg slid his bag off his back and took out the folder with the reports. Tiana read them for a few minutes in silence then looked back up at Mad Dawg.

"We had no idea you were alive… If this you're here for revenge or something. I swear, we didn't know anything!" She said nervously, backing up slightly, her eyes tearing up slightly. "Please, don't hurt my family."

"I ain't here for bloodshed, I'm here to apologize." Mad Dawg replied, his tone saddened. "I think Jax's death… was my fault…"

"What." Tiana quietly said, her eyes going wide.

"Sit down. This may take a while." Mad Dawg sighed, motioning to the chairs on the front porch.

And for the next hour, Mad Dawg explained everything. What Beta-576 really was, why Angela had left, how he had escaped, most of what he had been doing in the years afterwards, but finally, the deal with Virus, however, he left out the 'Omnic Blackout' and told her he apparently had pissed Virus off somehow, and didn't know himself, but Virus decided to attack both Overwatch and Talon for revenge.

"…so I go into this house, and there's Junkers everywhere. I'm only here because there's clues leading me there. So, I do what I can to get though quietly, and I get to one room, and Jax was there… Oh God…"

"What happened?" Tiana asked. "We weren't told what had happened… Only that he was dead…"

"He was practically mummified alive, the Junkers all took turns stabbing him over and over… He couldn't walk. I tried to get him out, I swear. But he couldn't move." Mad Dawg explained, his body shaking with fear and anger. "He… somehow recognized me. He warned me not to trust the medic. That she did this to me."

"Angela would never do that to someone!" Tiana exclaimed.

"He was talking about Moira." Mad Dawg replied. "He got halfway through it and then was shot by a Junker… This was all my fault… If I hadn't shat in their oatmeal… then they wouldn't have gone looking for people and…"

Tiana didn't speak, she looked off in the distance before looking at Mad Dawg.

"He wanted me to give you this." Mad Dawg added with a sigh, pulling a necklace out from his pocket. "He said to tell you he's sorry."

Tiana looked at the necklace, remembering it and then looked back at Mad Dawg. Slowly she took it and closed her eyes before speaking.

"Get out."

Mad Dawg stopped breathing for half a second, unsure of how to reply.

"I… I'm sorr-"

" **GET! OUT!"** She screamed, tears running down her eyes. "WHY ARE YOU HERE? YOU'VE _KILLED_ MY HUSBAND! WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT?! DO YOU WANT FORGIVENESS OR SOMETHING?!"

Mad Dawg remained frozen, unsure of what to do. He could tell the music had stopped form inside. Hell, he didn't really know _why_ he was here.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST SHOW UP AND APOLOGIZE AND ALL WILL BE FORGIVEN?! BECAUSE OF _**YOU**_ OUR DAUGHTER WILL NEVER KNOW HER FATHER! HOW DO YOU EXPECT ME TO FORGIVE THE FREAK THAT KILLED MY HUSBAND?!"

After a few deep breaths, Tiana seemed to have calmed down somewhat, her eyes red with anger and tears and her whole body trembling. Mad Dawg had gone whiter than a ghost. This was _not_ how he expected this conversation to go.

"Jax _loved_ you like his own." Tiana said. "Me? I don't know _what_ you are. Aside from a goddamn monster. You may not have shot him, but you might as well have. Now get out." She demanded, pointing down the road.

The silence returned, and it cut Mad Dawg in two. He simply sat there, head lowered practically to the ground, before he got up and began to walk away.

"I'm sorry, you'll never see me again." He mumbled as he stood up. Slinging his backpack over his back, he left. Tiana watched as her husband's killer walked down their front path and seemed to disappear into a dust cloud. She looked at the necklace once more and broke down into tears.

Mad Dawg returned to the balcony where he and Torb had their conversation earlier, the feeling of a weight being gone was well, gone. Now replaced with a crushing sense of dread. All he could do was quietly slid down against the wall.

 _A goddamn monster._

He was more than that. Wasn't he?

Sure he was.

Right?

In this moment, Mad Dawg honestly didn't know.

"Mad Dawg?"

Casting a glance over to his side, he saw Isabelle looking out with a concerned look on her face. The small Lindholm walked out and saw the tears on his face.

"Are you okay?" She quietly asked.

Mad Dawg didn't reply, he let a sniff out then the tears began flowing again. Isabelle didn't say anything but quietly walked over and hugged him tightly. As the two women walked by Ingrid could hear the sound of someone crying. The two assumed Reinhardt had too much to drink and was having a 'Drunk Breakdown' but were shocked to see Isabelle hugging Mad Dawg, the later who was quietly crying. While Mercy wanted to do something, having a feeling she knew what had happened, Ingrid convinced her that this wasn't the time. After a few minutes, Mad Dawg shook his head and looked up.

"Shit…" He cursed, briefly forgetting there was a kid nearby. "What the hell am I doing with my life?"

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Isabelle asked innocently.

"Nah. But thanks kid." He smiled down at her. "I'm just gonna chill here for a bit."

"Well… then so am I."

Isabelle smiled and snuggled up against him surprising Mad Dawg who smiled and wrapped her arm around her as he sat on the balcony, watching the sun set. As the two sat there, one thought ran through his mind.

 _I may be a monster, but this kid's showing me that I can also be human._

 **Sometimes, not everything goes the way we want it to. It can be hard to remember that not every story has a happy ending. This has always been a struggle for me with this story. Does Mad Dawg deserve to get a happy ending? Is he even a hero? These are questions WAY too deep for me to try and answer (and this story is much more for fun than anything) but still, sometimes it's fun to think for a minute.**

 **Also, I'm glad to say all the 'reconnecting' is FINALLY DONE! I wanted to give Torbjörn his own chapter for a few reasons. 1.) Thanksgiving special 2.) There was more between these two that Mad Dawg had to deal with than anyone else 3.) Comedy 4.) They didn't know about the cult just yet. But this chapter… wow. It just kept getting longer and longer! I was planning on like 5K words or so, but here we are pushing 12K and nearly 30 pages… I really hope you all enjoyed it! I was constantly going back and changing who said what and adding little jokes here and there to try and steer the story back to its more comedic roots, and then I went an added the ending, so I shot myself in the foot there I guess. Or maybe not. I dunno.**

 **Anyhow, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Reviews are always appreciated. But I'd also like to take some time to pay respect to a man who inspired me from day one. Not just writing a Dawg's Tale, but being creative in general. Yeah, you all know who it is.**

 **Stan Lee.**

 **I don't have anything to say other than… Thank you. To Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko for all the characters and stories you helped create, and the inspiration you gave to billions.**

 **Next time, Blizzard World!**

 **Also, if you guys wanna see an idea of what Mad Dawg might look like, check out my Deviantart (SkorchNTorch) I should warn you; One, I'm not got at drawing, and B) I don't have a clear idea what he looks like just yet, so it's more a concept than anything. If you think you know what he looks like or wanna give designing him a shot, go ahead, just let me know.**

 **Okay, I'm tired. I'm gonna go watch YouTube videos and play Mario Kart 8.**

 **Until next time!**


	40. How Mad Dawg Saved Christmas

Mad Dawg was at one of the weirdest parts of his life. And for someone who was a genetic monster created by a terrorist group, raised by a group of vigilante hackers, and eventually joining with one of the world's premier peacekeeper groups, that was saying something. Still, he found himself waking up some days and just looking around in amazement that he was back, not only with Overwatch, but also with Dedsec. The later of the two groups had declined the invitation to join forces, but also agreed to share information when they could. This usually meant sending info on gun shipments and drug smuggling tunnels, but then dealing with the actual members of those organizations in their own way. Not to mention the fact that Dedsec was very much a group based on loyalty and a dash of anarchy, and Overwatch was a team built on rules and establishment. Despite how much of a 90's films that sounded like, the two groups just weren't going to get along. However, the _members_ of the two groups got along great. It would be an understatement to say that Junkrat and Wrench had a few things in common, as Mad Dawg had to help put out at least a dozen and a half fires since they started building 'Totally legal stuff' according to Wrench. Marcus and Lúcio got along great, the former not only being a fan but also having some experience with music, and the latter respecting him for helping Mad Dawg the way he did. Surprisingly, Marcus and Genji also became friends, the duo training in parkour in the simulation room and sometimes seeing who could get around the base the best. Josh mainly kept to himself, although he and Satya still worked together with Josh picking up surprisingly fast on how light construction worked. He and Mei had also sort of had a friendship, but it was hard to tell with Josh, although Zenyatta and him did seem to get along surprisingly well. Sitara found herself both at odds but also having a strange form of respect for Pharah, and Pharah felt the same way. However, Sitara did find someone who enjoyed hanging out and making art with Hana, the young gamer loving Sitara's art, and not understanding her denial of Hana's offer to use it in her merchandise. T-Bone and Reinhardt had become drinking buddies, and it seemed like finding someone more his age made Ray a bit more relaxed. That wasn't to say there weren't issues however.

Oh boy…

Right off the bat, Mercy, Solider: 76 and Wrench were at odds due to the anarchist's tactics and opinions on how things should be dealt with. One of those conversations ending with Mad Dawg having to drag Wrench out of the room before he and Jack could kill each other.

…Okay maybe it was only Wrench who had issues with some of the agents of Overwatch, but that was kind of to be expected. Thankfully, Dedsec had went back to their plans and were working on exposing a charity which was supposed to be helping people in Nepal… but as you could probably guess, that wasn't what they were actually doing. Still, Mad Dawg hadn't been paying attention to the days, and wouldn't you know. Christmas was right around the corner. Thankfully, Mad Dawg didn't struggle like last year to try and figure out what to get everyone this year, but it did get a bit awkward when he was trying to figure out what Marcus and the others. Still, it didn't take long for him to put together a good list and he set off to get what he needed.

It was Christmas eve, a few days before this year's OverOffice Christmas Party as Mad Dawg called it, and Mad Dawg was pretty happy. Everything was bought and hidden in his small safe house near the Watchpoint, and he had been spending the day hitting the slopes with Zarya and a few of the others. To many of the heroes' shock, Mad Dawg hadn't been snowboarding or skiing before. He claimed he tried it a long time ago. But ended up hurting himself badly, something concerning a barbed wire fence, a cliff, two cardboard cut-outs of children's cartoon characters and a pack of hungry coyotes. He had been touch-and-go with the details, and it was clear it was going to stay that way. Now, Mad Dawg was wearing a grey coat with neon purple accents down the sides and the sleeves his face was covered by a matching pair of goggles and a frog hat he borrowed from Lúcio. The heroes also learned something, Mad Dawg was good at a lot of things, fighting, planning, improvising, cooking.

But snowboarding?

"CRAP!"

Whump!

Well, not so much.

Zarya came to a stop near a large snowbank and pulled Mad Dawg out of it, laughing at his dazed form before he shook his head and wiped the snow off of his goggles.

"You'll get better." She smirked.

"Yeah, I hope so." Mad Dawg sighed. "Hey, where's Lúci-"

"Woo!" The Dj shouted as he shot by on his skis, wearing an artic fox get up. "On your left, doggo!"

The two watched him disappear over the hill before looking to one another.

"Well, let's get back to it." Mad Dawg said, jumping on the spot to maneuver himself back towards the hill. "Okay… just… bend the knees and…"

Zarya grinned wickedly and shoved Mad Dawg down the hill, he flailed his arms around as he shot off straight down the hill, forgetting how to control himself. However, his fear was quickly replaced with adrenaline as he shot down the hill, beginning to feel control, and going faster. Further down the hill, Mei was enjoying going across the hill, back and forth she calmly made her way down. She was suddenly thrown off balance as a greyish-purple streak flew past her, whooping excitedly. A bit further down the hill Tracer was loving the speed as she flew down the hill, only to see Mad Dawg was suddenly on her left.

"Hey Lena! Last one down buys coffees at the chalet!" He called over the sound of the snow blowing around them before he bent his knees and pulled ahead of her.

"Not fair!" She shouted after him and took off down the hill.

Mad Dawg cast a glance over his shoulder and saw Lena closing the gap between them and laughed.

"I thought you were the fast one!" He called.

Mad Dawg began swerving back and forth between the trees, his legs going back and forth so fast he was afraid he would snap his feet clean off. Suddenly, he had a mouthful of pine needles as he didn't notice a low hanging branch which proceeded to smack him in the mouth. Spitting it out, he saw the British pilot flash him a salute as she jumped at the top of a small hill and flew through the air, turning around twice before she landed. Mad Dawg followed, jumping off the top of the hill and grabbing his board, and spinning upside-down. He landed a bit roughly but continued the chase. Bending as much as he could, he grabbed some snow and made a rough ball with it. He threw it at Tracer and it hit her in the back of the head, throwing her off balance.

"Hey!" She cried as Mad Dawg shot by. The two of them continued back and forth down the hill, Mad Dawg heading towards the terrain park, daring Tracer to follow. Tracer grinned and accepted the challenge, the two entered the terrain park, Mad Dawg jumped and panicked when he realized he was on a rail. Sure, he had grinded before, both on roller skates and his longboard, but this was new, he was struggling to not wipe out, just as he managed to get a grasp on what he was doing, the rail ended and he hit the ground and fell forward. Thankfully, he flipped around and managed to get back up. Tracer meanwhile went up the side of a half pipe and flew off the top, spinning around as she laughed and came back down. Only to see Zarya fly by both her and Mad Dawg, causing a bit of snow to fly up in her wake.

"Yo!" Mad Dawg called as he came closer to Tracer. "Truce?"

"Nope!" she laughed and pulled ahead of him.

"Agghhh…" Mad Dawg muttered.

Meanwhile, Lúcio was sitting near the end of the terrain park, enjoying a drink as he watched people enjoying their day, only for Zarya to zip by, followed by Tracer, and then Mad Dawg, who wiped out once again. Laughing Lúcio got up and made his way over to Mad Dawg.

"Yo Dawg, what's goin' on?" He asked.

"We've got a bet, last one down's buying coffee. And-" Mad Dawg didn't have time to finish as Lúcio realized what was going on and took off down the hill. "Really?"

Lúcio tore down the mountain like a mad man, weaving in between anyone who got in his way until he overtook Tracer, who seemed shocked by his sudden appearance and then overtook Zarya laughing all the way.

"Oh, come on…" The Russian bodybuilder muttered.

After a few more minutes, the three skidded to a stop at the bottom of the hill, all breathing heavily and laughing.

"Woo!" He laughed as he looked at the others coming down and stopping behind him. "That was awesome!"

"Where is Mad Dawg?" Zarya asked confused, looking around for the teenage mutant.

"Poor dear, he's gonna be stuck buying drinks for all of-" Tracer began smugly, only to be cut off by a voice screaming:

"INCOMING!"

Tracer's eyes widened and she felt the urge to move as Mad Dawg came flying down the last part of the hill and shot past Tracer, and slammed straight into Zarya. The force of his sudden stop caused his snowboard to unlatch itself form his boots and went flying into a nearby snowbank, nearly hitting Hanzo as it shot past him like one of his arrows. Mad Dawg's legs lurched forward, then he fell back into the snow.

"Ow." He finally spoke.

"You alright kid?" Lúcio laughed looking down.

"Yeah. Just might have broken my ribs. Again." Mad Dawg wheezed out, slowly getting up with a sickening _Crack!_ Making some of the hero's wince. "I'll live."

"Sorry love, didn't mean to put you through all that." Tracer said apologetically, giving him a side hug. Ever since Mad Dawg returned, Tracer seemed to have gone from being his friend, to basically becoming his over-protective big sister. She frequently asked who he was doing, anytime he did something stupid, she was there to try and talk him out of it, and then yell at Junkrat who encouraged him to do it. Mad Dawg didn't mind, hell, she was great to talk to, but sometimes she got a little _too_ caring, but then again…

" _Whatever."_ Mad Dawg shook his head. _"She genuinely cares, that's all that matters."_

"C'mon, let's get you to Ana." Zarya said, helping Mad Dawg towards the chalet. "She should be able to help."

 _Two minutes later…_

"What happened this time?" Ana didn't even need to look up from her tea as she heard the door open and the two walked into the chalet.

"This idiot pushed me down the double black diamond hill." Mad Dawg groaned. He felt his bones re-attaching in his body, and it hurt. His ribs slowly fused back onto his body and he sighed in relief. "And now I'm buying drinks…"

For the next few hours, the heroes enjoyed the day they had off. The resort was busy, but it also seemed calm. Mad Dawg used his teachings from Marcus to be able to buy everyone coffees while not going broke, Genji ended up drinking his through a straw, Lúcio 'accidentally' spilled some on his lap and Mad Dawg remembered he didn't like coffee. There was a calm conversation going on, some were talking about Christmas, some were talking about the hills, then Mad Dawg perked up when he heard a song on the jukebox begin playing.

"Holy crap I've been trying to remember what this was for YEARS!" He exclaimed. Everyone quieted down and listened.

"Daydream Believer?" Hanzo asked.

"Yes! That's what it was called!" He laughed. "I could only ever remember the melody, not the lyrics…"

 _Cheer up sleepy Jean,_

 _Oh, what can it mean to a_

 _Daydream believer and a_

 _Homecoming queen?_

"Hey, how do you think it would go if you re-wrote it?" Mad Dawg asked, looking over to the musician.

"Probably something like.. Cheer up sleepy Lena… Oh what can it mean?" Lúcio sang.

"Brazilian musician, and a mutant teeeeeeeeennnn." Mad Dawg continued, singing. Before people laughed and went back to their drinks.

"So, kid. What you got planned for the evening?" Zarya asked.

"Marcus and the others were gonna meet up for Christmas for the first time in a

while, I'm looking forward to it. What about you guys?"

"I gotta head out soon, I'm heading back to Brazil to hang with my family." Lúcio commented.

"Emily and I are going to the Watchpoint for dinner with Winston."

"Genji? What are you and Mercy doing?" Mad Dawg asked with a smirk.

"She's going to be healing you after I'm done with you." Genji flatly replied, annoyed at Mad Dawg's seemingly endless supply of 'Ship Jokes' as Hana called them. This got a laugh but Ana glared over at the two.

"Well, whatever you're up to, I hope you have a great time." Mad Dawg smiled.

 _Later that night…_

Mad Dawg had used one of his teleporters and warped to one of his safe houses he had set up. He looked around the base for something. He frowned when he didn't see it a first, then remembered where he stashed it. Digging out T-Bone's jacket, he folded it up and packed it into a backpack he had with some marshmallows for tonight. Once he had what he needed, he sat down on his bed and began reading the letter he got from Isabelle. Ever since thanksgiving, he and the young Lindholm had been writing letters back and forth. Isabelle had been the one to initiate the letters, and Mad Dawg had no idea what to do, but after some encouragement from Ana and even Torbjörn, he began writing back. She talked about how school was going or about how she hoped one day she could help people like Mad Dawg did. The latter of the two wrote about some of his dreams, his old hobbies he began to pick up once again, and other such things. Torb was often the deliverer of them, as Mad dawg didn't really have a home to send mail to, (something which confused and somewhat saddened Isabelle, but Dawg assured her it was okay.) Now he decided to go out and get some fresh air. The sun had begun to set, but time was five hours faster here, so he wasn't worried. As he made his way down the street, he heard someone groaning in pain and looked around surprised, he heard the groaning again, this time a bit louder and quickly took off towards it. He slid down a nearby hill that was partially covered in ice and snow and came to a stop. In front of him was a man in all red with a large sack next to him.

" _What was a mall Santa doing here?"_ Mad Dawg questioned as he vaulted over a fallen tree.

"Hey! What happened?" He called as he came to a stop. The man groaned and turned over, Mad Dawg saw that the man had a large white beard.

"Oh, thank you, young man!" He groaned. "I… I had an accident and… Agh!" The man yelled in pain as Mad Dawg looked down at his leg.

"Pretty sure your leg's broken. Hang on, I'll get a med kit." Mad Dawg stated, beginning to turn back towards his safe house, only for the man to grab his arm.

"Wait! I need your help with something!" He said, his voice somewhat exhausted.

"What is it? You need me to call a store and tell them what happened?"

"No, no. I'll be fine, once I get home everything'll be fine. But young man… I need you to help me tonight."

"With what?" Mad Dawg asked, feeling a little creeped out by this man.

"Well… I shouldn't tell you this, but you seem to have a pure heart… I'm Santa. The real one." Santa finally admitted.

"…..I'm sorry. What?" Mad Dawg finally replied after a few moments of shocked silence.

"I know this might seem weird, but I'm Santa." Santa repeated himself. "The real one."

"…again. What?" Mad Dawg repeated himself. "Are you sure you didn't hit your head when you fell down the hill and-"

Mad Dawg was about to continue, but 'Santa' reached into his bag and pulled an obscenely large Lego set out form it. There was _no way_ it could've fit in that bag without deforming it in some way. Mad Dawg's jaw hung open comically for a few moments then he shook his head in disbelief.

"I….I….I…" He stammered, shocked.

"Now do you believe me my boy?" Santa asked.

"Yes!" Mad dawg exclaimed. "I… I guess…"

There was the sound of bells jingling above and the two looked up to see several reindeer flying above them. They looked down slightly nervous before Mad Dawg looked back to the man who he now knew for sure was Santa.

"Yeah, I believe you."

"I need your help dear boy." Santa sighed. "I'm afraid I didn't see some of the trees back there and crashed my sleigh. You're right in assuming my leg is broken, but more importantly, I need someone to do my job for me tonight."

"You mean… you want _**ME**_ to be _**YOU**_ for this evening?" Mad Dawg asked, pointing to himself, then to the jolly old man in amazement.

"Yes, Mad Dawg. I hate to ask you to take on such a task, but I can't finish it tonight and none of the elves can get here in time to finish the job."

"Uh, how do you know my name?" Mad Dawg asked, slightly taken aback. "Wait, right. Santa powers." He paused for a few moments then spoke up again: "Okay. I'll do it." Mad Dawg nodded. "This is insane, even by my standards, but I'll do it."

"Thank you, my boy!" Santa sighed relieved. "You'll need these." Taking his hat off, he handed Mad Dawg his hat and pointed to the sack. "All you need to do is follow the list, each gift will appear when you need it most, and the spirit of Christmas will guide you."

At this point, several of the reindeer had come down and looked at Mad Dawg timidly, before helping Santa onto one of their backs, preparing to take off again. Santa adjusted himself, making sure not to hit his broken leg and looked back to the mutant teen.

"If you're nervous about time, don't worry! Father Time is a friend of mine, he'll be on your side tonight. If you get lost remember this: 'The spirit of Christmas is the compass of the heart'."

"I… Why are you trusting me to do this?" Mad Dawg finally managed to ask, realizing he probably should've thought this through. He couldn't get around the entire world in one night! And what about his friends?! Marcus and the rest were gonna be waiting for him! Was he supposed to call them up and say 'Hey, I'm Santaing right now, gotta cancel for the party!'?

"Because… Well, if you finish the job tonight, I'll explain when you're done." Santa replied, and Mad Dawg sensed no ill-intentions in his voice, this wasn't a joke, or some elaborate prank. This was Santa, and he needed MD's help.

Santa.

Needed.

His.

Help.

Wow.

"Alright." Mad Dawg nodded. "I can do this… but how do I get into chimneys and other crevices?"

"Once you take the job, you'll find out." Santa replied.

"Okay… Again, weird but okay. Is there anything else? Some sort of Santa Clause about conduct or something?"

"For the most part, do your best not to be seen. Most people won't see you unless you choose to show yourself. But don't worry if they do, it's all part of the holiday magic that Christmas brings. However, if there's someone who you feel the need to show yourself to, a friend or a child in need, feel free." Santa explained, and Mad Dawg nodded in response, signalling he understood.

"Do you have any way to travel? If not, I might be able to get another sleigh down here…" Santa commented, thinking it over.

Mad Dawg paused, thinking it over himself, and wondering how he was going to get around the world, when a wide grin spread across his face, realizing what he had to travel.

"Yeah, I got something." He grinned. "I've been meaning to bust it out from storage for a while now."

"Thank you so much Mad Dawg. And good luck!" Santa called as he flew into the sky. "If you need assistance, just remember, the Spirit will guide you if the mind is willing!"

In the nearby town, a brother and sister quietly lay in their beds, trying their best to fall asleep. It was Christmas eve, and they were excited. They were desperate to fall asleep, knowing Santa wouldn't come unless they were asleep. After what felt like hours (but was only five minutes) they heard something on their roof and they gasped excitedly. Meanwhile, Mad Dawg was trying to find a way into the house, he looked at the chimney but it was a metallic one so there was no way for him to get down it. He sighed and then jumped off the roof, landing in a snowbank he crouched down and crept across the parameter until he came to a window. Looking at it, he saw a crowbar sticking out from the bag and his eyes widened in shock.

" _That can't be right…"_ He thought aloud. Suddenly, he heard a door unlock and he froze, as a woman came out onto the porch, he jumped and clung to the slanted roof above, hiding in the beams above. She looked around confused and then walked back into the house. Mad Dawg waited until he was sure she was gone, and dropped down and checked the door. Locked.

" _Well, time for some Christmas breaking and entering."_ He thought. Only to find a key in his pocket. _"Okay, this is kinda weird."_

Trying the key in the lock, he found the door silently opened and Mad Dawg quietly entered. He looked around then saw a coloured glow coming from another room. Peeking in he saw the Christmas tree standing tall in the corner of the room he was looking into. Grabbing the gifts from the bag, he crept into the living room and put them under the tree, before beginning to walk back, unaware of the two kids watching from the top of the stairs. Once he got outside, he closed the door and took off into the sky again, his jet-backpack being surprisingly quiet. All the while the two kids watched, shocked.

"Did you see him?!" The boy whispered.

"Yes!" The girl whispered back. "Why was he a bird?"

Meanwhile, Mad Dawg landed on the next house, this one with a chimney, and he decided to give it a shot. Once he entered the chimney, he found it was (unsurprisingly) too small for him to fit.

"Great…" He muttered. "Now what?"

" _The spirit will guide you if the mind is willing."_ Ran through his head.

" _Okay… Maybe, I just gotta believe. Yeah! That's it! I gotta believe!"_ Mad Dawg smiled and focused, thinking of the memories he had from the year before, all the Christmas cheer there was, and wanting to make sure everyone could experience that this year. Suddenly, the chimney became far larger on the inside than it looked on the outside. Realizing he could traverse it, he made his way down, feathers brushing against the bricks. Finally, he peaked out through the floo to make sure no one was around. He made his way out and got the next set of presents out before noticing something.

" _Milk and cookies! Awesome!"_ He internally exclaimed as he ate one of them. _"Wait… this is oatmeal raisin…? Great! I love these!"_

After finishing the food, he made his way back up and set off to the next house, then the next, then the next, and he continued on this way until the town was done.

"Okay, how long did that tak-" Mad Dawg muttered, looking at his watch only to see five seconds had passed. "Holy crap this is weird." Shaking his head, he grabbed his sack-

"That's what she said."

-and took off to the next town. Mad Dawg slipped in through windows, grates, chimneys, anything he could, including a few broken windows which he repaired (somehow, Christmas magic) on his way out. As he was warping up his last house in this leg of the journey, he heard a voice suddenly speak up.

"Who are you?"

Mad Dawg turned around, realizing in that moment he had no weapon, but all he saw a man holding a baseball bat standing in the door way. He seemed to be a mixture of shocked and angered at some random person being in his house.

"It's alright. I'm Santa Phoenix, or Phoenix Claws, I'm not sure which yet." He answered, the man stared in disbelief.

"Y…you're that Crimson Phoenix guy!" The man exclaimed, realization shining in his eyes. "I thought you were only in Numbani!"

"Well, I _was_ , but a friend of mine needed help, and… I gotta keep going." Mad Dawg explained as he set the gifts down and pointed over his shoulder to the chimney. The man watched in disbelief as Mad Dawg went backwards up the chimney, a red feather eventually falling back down. He looked at it shocked then noticed a can on the fire place with a note reading 'Don't say I was here'.

And so, it went. Mad Dawg went house-to-house, slipping in and out as quietly as he could, delivering presents to everywhere. Whenever he missed a house, he would notice it start to gain a soft glow. Perhaps it was due to the massive calcium boost he was getting at each house, be he felt much stronger than he normally did. He also didn't feel tired at all, like he really _could_ travel the world in less than an hour! He hadn't paid any attention to the time as he shot off to his next location. He felt the air grow even more frigid as he flew into Russia, thankfully, no one seemed to notice him flying above, as dealing with the Russian government would probably be very difficult in his current situation. He hit up a few more houses, but noticed it was very quiet.

" _Did everyone go to bed already?"_ He thought as he slipped up a chimney and sat on the roof for a minute. He paused, thinking it over, then heard the sound of people singing. Flying over towards the centre of the town, Mad Dawg watched what he assumed was most of the town was gathered around a tree, singing a song in Russian. Mad Dawg smiled down, watching families embracing one another as their song filled the night sky. Mad Dawg smiled as he watched the scene below. He'd have loved to jump down and join in, but he knew he had to keep going, so he set to delivering more of the presents quickly and quietly. When he was done, he returned to the celebration and watched from the rooftop. He didn't understand much of what they were singing (he had picked up a little bit of Russian from Zarya) and listened to the calm soothing tune chorusing.

" _I thought Russian Christmas on January 7_ _th_ _…"_

Well, typically it was, but… we're sorta playing a little bit loose with this.

" _Ah."_

Finally giving a small wave to a few people who thought they saw something up on the roof, Mad Dawg jumped and took off to the last place he had to deliver presents to in Russia (yeah, he was doing this pretty fast now.).

Volskaya Industries.

Mad Dawg shrugged and looked at the bag, then smiled, seeing a pile of coal. Volskaya had been naughty… and now it was karma time! And dear reader… Let's just say they won't be finding all of it anytime soon. As for Katya Volskaya? well, she was going to have a hard time understanding how that a 'blue shadow' as some workers claimed broke into the base and dumped coal everywhere. That would've been bad enough, if it wasn't for the fact that as she was leaving to get her daughter, she saw a man in a bird suit walking down the hall, looking at a long list. He paused and looked up at her.

"You… uh… Katya Volskaya?" He asked, mispronouncing her name.

"Yes…" She answered nervously. "Who are you?" Slowly reaching for her security alertion device.

"I'm Phoenix Clawz, or Santa Phoenix. Still haven't decided on which." Mad Dawg replied in his deep tone. "You're uh… not supposed to see me…"

The two stood there awkwardly, Katya still debating if she should call security, until the figure puled something out form his bag.

"Here, this is for your daughter." He said.

Katya was taken aback by the gesture, but took the gift and looked puzzled and untrustingly at the masked figure.

"Who are you really?" She asked.

"I don't blame you for what you did." Mad Dawg suddenly commented. "I don't _like_ it, but I also know why."

"Excuse me?" She asked, somewhat surprised and angered.

"The whole, uh… Omnic… thing." Mad Dawg explained awkwardly and in a low tone.

"What do you know?" She hissed, suddenly very defensive. "I can have security up here in less than twent-"

"Aye… I ain't here to blackmail you." Mad Dawg rolled his eyes behind his mask. "And I ain't here to kill you either. I'm here to deliver some Christmas gifts. So, if you wanna start something, I'll warn you now. It may be Christmas, but it won't be white."

There was a tense standoff between the two before Mad dawg began walking away.

"Maybe I was wrong, who knows? What's true and not… I don't much care at the end of the day. But I'll tell you this. _Be. Better._ " He finished, pointing at her before jumping out a window. Katya stood there, shocked as to what just happened, but shook her head and went to get her daughter. What had just happened was probably stress, yes! Of course! Just holiday jitters was all. At the same time, Mad Dawg shot off through the sky, this time towards China. He smiled as he flew above the lanterns illuminating the streets below, he came to a bit of a rough landing and hoisted his bag up, continuing his mission. He found the first house on the list and smiled, time to spread some holiday cheer.

 _Meanwhile…_

"So, you think he's gonna be there?" Wrench asked as he packed a bag with snacks.

"Why wouldn't he be?" Sitara replied.

"Well, considering what happened there last time, and the fact his recent escapades leaving him potentially unhinged, and the fact that this would be the first time in almost a decade he's been alone with us, he may have reason to not show up." Josh said, casting a slight glance over to the others. All of whom seemed a little annoyed. "What?"

Mad Dawg was starting to get tired, he had been all over the world, Canada, Mexico, Africa, Asia, USA, Scotland, The Middle East, Ireland, and many other places. Despite his best efforts, he didn't always get away unscathed. One mother accidentally punched him out of fear when she bumped into him while going to get something to drink and seeing him in their living room, another man pulled a gun on him, believing he was a robber, but after a few minutes of talking, the man calmed down. He had an issue when he flew near some land owned by a group called 'Deadlock', and while time may not have been going too fast, it was still going. He was finishing up France, he saw a large mansion off in the distance. He didn't bother looking at the list and flew towards it. The other issue he had was the fact that he drank a _ton_ of milk. Like, more than anyone probably should. Thankfully, his healing factor kept him from dying due to milk overdose, but now he had to pee. Really badly. He flew into the next house and quietly dashed into the bathroom, not noticing (or caring) who lived here.

"This place… It's amazing!" Sombra exclaimed as she looked around the mansion as she followed Widowmaker, who didn't reply. "Why didn't you ever tell us this place was so big?"

"What reason did I have?" Widowmaker replied. "We had no reason to come here."

"Aw, c'mon Wids! Look at this place! This is going to be amazing!"

"I still don't see how she convinced us to celebrate Christmas here…" Reaper grumbled as he sat on a couch, casting a glance around the room.

"Do you always have to be so negative?" Doomfist smirked. "It is Christmas Eve after all."

Before Reaper could reply, the sound of a toilet flushing filled the mansion, followed by a loud sigh.

"Is Moira-"

"I'm right here!" The scientist huffed, rather annoyed at the question.

"Wait. If we're all here. Then who's…" Sombra began, but stopped when Mad Dawg walked out, looking around the room, his back turned to the Talon agents. When he turned around he froze and looked around before finally finding the words he wanted to say.

"Well f**k, this is my life now." He commented before pegging Reaper and Moira in the face with a piece of coal and then taking off in a full sprint and jumping through a window. He activated his jetpack, and rocketed off. Refusing to look back, and laughing all the way.

"…what just happened?" Sombra asked, genuinely confused.

Mad Dawg sighed as he left a house, he was in his last location, Switzerland. He was a little awkward about coming here and put it off as much as he could. But now he was at the end of his trek, and he finished his last house.

Until he saw a small light off in the distance.

Not wanting to miss a house, Mad Dawg flew over to it, seeing that yes indeed he had missed a house. He didn't bother checking the list again (even though internally something was creaming for him to) he jumped into the chimney and slid down into the room. When he looked around, he set the last of the presents under the tree, his bag now empty and looked around the room. He smiled at the small set up, then saw a letter next to a plate of cookies and milk. He smiled, he had been saving them for Santa to read later and he picked up this one. It seemed a bit longer than the others, and he sat down on the fireplace to read it.

"Dear Santa." He read quietly to himself. "I want to thank you for whatever you've brought me. I've tried my best to be good this year, but there's someone I want to tell you about. Someone really important."

" _Nice."_ He thought. _"Talking about the kid's parents. That's sweet._ "

"My friend…" Mad Dawg trailed off and dripped the letter when he read the name on the letter. "…Mad Dawg…"

He scanned the bottom of the letter, looking for who wrote it, and his grip tightened when he read the name.

Isabelle.

" _Of all the houses, I end up last. It had to be HERS…"_ He half-laughed and half-groaned internally, before continuing to read the letter.

"Mad Dawg is a good person, he tries his best to do good, but apparently he's made lots of mistakes in the past. But when I met him, he was one of the kindest people I've ever met, even if he isn't fully human. I tell you about him because I don't want you to forget him. He is honest and very hardworking, and only wants what's best for the people he cares about like my Grandpa Torbjern and Reinhart and Aunt Angela but he dosen't always get it right. I know this must be very disheartening for him, and he seems sadder than he'll admit to, but he never gives up and asks for no reward. So please, don't forget about my friend Mad Dawg, but it may be hard because I don't think he has a home or really much family… So please, take whatever you were going to give to me and give it to Mad Dawg, he needs it more this Christmas."

Mad Dawg stopped, crying somewhat audibly and removing his helmet so he could wipe the tears form his eyes.

"Love, Isabelle. P.S. Do you by any chance in the big old bag of yours, have a way to let Dawg see his family again? I think he'd really appreciate it."

Mad dawg sat there, head lowered, unsure of what to say or do. He lost focus on everything and just stared at the letter in his hands. He didn't notice two people slowly walk into the room nervous at first, until he heard a woman's voice.

"Mad Dawg?"

Looking up with tears in his eyes, he looked at Maja and Gordon looking at him shocked.

"Oh. Hey." He said, wiping the tears from his eyes again.

"What… what are you doing here?" Maja asked.

"I uh… ugh… you wouldn't believe me if I told you." He shook his head.

"Try us." Gordon replied simply.

"I… Uh… I might be helping Santa tonight." Mad Dawg sighed defeatedly. "I know that sounds crazy, but it's really what's happening."

Maja and Gordon looked to one another before looking back to Mad Dawg.

"And no, Torbjörn didn't set me up to this." Mad Dawg added.

"Then how did you…" Maja began but stopped in shock when she saw Mad Dawg go part way up the chimney. "Okay, where are the wires?"

"There are none." Mad Dawg shook his head. "If you believe, take my hand."

Gordon looked to Maja then shrugged and took Mad Dawg's hand (no homo) and was shocked when Mad Dawg pulled him up into the chimney with him. The two went back to the room and Gordon stared shocked at him.

"I…okay…" He muttered.

"Are you alright?" Maja asked kindly. "We heard you crying."

"Did you see this?" Mad Dawg asked handing her the letter. She read it over and her eyes softened.

"No." She said quietly. "She asked us not to read it…"

She passed it to Gordon who quietly read it, seeming a bit saddened himself. Then the two smiled to one another.

"That's our girl." Maja smiled warmly. "Would you like to say a word or two to her? She's asleep, but I bet she'd love to see you."

"A..are you sure it's alright?" Mad Dawg asked bewildered.

"We've seen the letters you've been sending one another, they're _adorable._ " Maja cooed. "You really seem to care and she thinks the world of you. It would mean a lot to her."

Mad Dawg nodded before putting his helmet and hat back on. Quietly he made his way up the stairs until he quietly entered her room. Getting down on his knees he gently shook her, and she slowly stirred. After a few moments, her eyes fluttered open slightly.

"Santa?" She mumbled, a very hopeful tone in her voice.

"Not exactly." Mad Dawg smiled, before removing his helmet and smiling down at her. "Merry Christmas kid."

"Mad Dawg!" She exclaimed sleepily, hugging Mad Dawg's feathery suit. "It's you!"

"Did you think I'd forget you?" Mad Dawg warmly smiled.

Isabelle didn't reply, just warmly hugging Mad Dawg. When she let go, she sat back on her bed and tilted her head confused.

"Why are you in a chicken costume?" She asked tiredly.

"I'm a Phoenix." Mad Dawg chuckled.

"A what?" She asked sleepily.

"I'll tell you some other time." He said rubbing her head. "But I got a text message from Santa, he got your letter."

"Really?!" She yawned.

"Yeah, he said you're one of the kindest children he's ever seen." He said calmly.

"Wow…" She said sleepily.

"I think it's time for you to go back to bed." Mad dawg said, pulling her blanket up over her.

"Will you stay?" She asked innocently. Mad Dawg nodded.

"Sure."

Sitting next to her bed, Mad Dawg quietly waited until Isabelle was fast asleep then left through her window flying over to another roof, he opened the bag one last time and saw a note at the bottom, reaching down to get it, he found himself falling into the bag, and sliding across an ice patch. Coming to a stop, he looked up and saw dozens of small people with pointed ears looking at him, all on a large hall.

"What the heck?" He muttered.

"Mad Dawg my boy!" Santa's deep voice echoed throughout the large hall. Mad Dawg pulled himself up and smiled as Santa slapped him on the back. "You did it my boy!"

"I did? Awesome!" Mad Dawg sighed relieved.

"Thank you so much Dawg, you've saved Christmas!"

Mad Dawg suddenly found himself being hugged by an old woman with a warm smile in her face.

"Thank you dear! I'm sorry if my husband caused you any trouble." Mrs. Claus smiled at him.

"None at all Ma'am!" Mad Dawg replied with a smile, following them to a set of chairs. Sitting down, Mrs. Claus poured them all a cup of tea and Mad Dawg sighed contently.

"This was… an amazing experience." Mad Dawg smiled at the two. "This was a real eye-opener for me. Thank you. Thank you both."

"I should be thanking you again my boy." Santa replied.

"But… why did you trust me with this job?" Mad Dawg finally asked.

"Well, Christmas was a time for family to come together as one. People during this time of the year feel much more connected than any time of the year. There's so much more love this time of the year than any other time. I sensed that unconditional love in you for your friends, for your aunt Ziegler, your hacker friends, little Isabelle, I knew you would be able to have the kind of spirit needed to make the trip." Santa explained. But Mad Dawg seemed downcast.

"What's wrong dear?" Mrs. Claus asked.

"My… hacker friends…" Mad Dawg sighed sadly, looking down. "I missed the meet up… I promised I'd be there, and I missed it."

It was quiet for a few moments, then Santa began laughing. It (like the stories) was a deep laugh that made his belly jiggle until he stopped and sighed.

"My boy, have you forgotten what powered your trek this night? The spirit of Christmas brought you this far, do you think it'll abandon you now?"

Mad Dawg looked confused until Santa added.

"Focus lad. You'll find your path."

"Thank you, and Merry Christmas Mr. and Mrs. Claus." Mad Dawg smiled as he closed his eyes and sighed. When he opened them, he was sitting in the middle of the old train yard. He was shocked but smiled none the less.

"Yo! Dawg!" He heard Marcus call. "You here?"

"Yeah! Just a sec!" Mad Dawg called back, quickly getting changed and running down to where Wrench was starting a fire.

"Merry Christmas sweetie." Sitara grinned and hugged Mad Dawg lovingly.

"Get your ass over here Dawg! We're doing Beer-Nog!" T-Bone exclaimed.

Mad Dawg smiled and sat down, as the hackers began roasting marshmallows, Mad Dawg noticed Wrench and Marcus were wearing elf hats and T-bone and him were wearing Santa hats. There laughed and sang a few songs (poorly) until in a bright blue flash, with a _BRAZATT!_ A couch appeared, with McCree, Junkrat and Roadhog sitting on it, eating some cookies.

"Whoops." Junkrat said, looking at the remote he was holding. "Wrong remote."

"Hey kid." McCree said with an awkward wave.

"Hey man!" Mad dawg smiled. "You guys wanna join?"

"…yes." Roadhog simply said.

So as the friends all sat around the fire, there was laughter, gifts, and a warm feeling that only Christmas could bring. Mad Dawg smiled, finally feeling like things were going to be better. Together with both his old Dedsec family and his Overwatch friends, together all enjoying the spirit of Christmas.

 **A.N. Merry Christmas everyone. I'mma take a break for a bit, don't worry, the DBZ DB fic will be returning soon.**


	41. New Year, New Problems

**A.N. There might be some slight inaccuracies in some of the traditions of the Lunar New Year celebration. Sorry about that, creative liberties and all.**

As the lanterns illuminated the streets, Mad Dawg, Mei and several others walked the streets of Beijing, taking in the sights of the Lunar New Year Celebration. Mad Dawg's eyes couldn't sit still as he looked from one place to another almost spontaneously. Mei smiled over to him and messed with his hair.

"There's a lot to see, isn't there?" She remarked with a grin.

"It's beautiful…" Mad Dawg breathed, looking at the decorations which adorned the stores and houses surrounding them. "Why did I not know about this?! All I did was get hungover for three days on New Year's Eve! I should've been here!"

"Well, the Lunar New Year begins usually in February, so you should have time to recover from your hangover before this celebration began." Hanzo remarked. "So, you could get hungover here as well."

"Please don't encourage him…" Mercy frowned at the archer, who smirked in response.

"So, dumb question, but I didn't think you guys would celebrate the Lunar New Year." Mad Dawg said, looking back to the Shimada brothers. "It just… your…"

"One of the main aspects of the Lunar New Year Celebration is family." Hanzo began. "To many, it dosen't matter where you come from, but how you celebrate. If one is respectful to the culture and honorable to their family, then it is all the same as if they came from China."

"Besides, it'll be a lot more fun with you guys here!" Mei said happily as Tracer and Emily returned, the former now wearing a rose-styled outfit.

"Yeah." Mad Dawg smiled back, feeling happy. "It should be."

The group continued walking through the streets, laughter and music everywhere, the smell of food cooking came from every home and resturaunt. The red lanterns illuminated the town as humans and omnics seemed to be united in the celebration of the New Year.

" _How do you know so much about the Chinese New Year?"_

 **Google. And I've celebrated it a few times before.**

" _Ah."_

Tracer and Mercy were thinking the same thing, it felt wonderful to see Mad Dawg so happy once again. In the few months since he returned, it had seemed like he had become socially removed, like he was present but also distant. He was still happy, quirky and well, Mad Dawg-ish, but there was noticeably something different. But still, seeing him so amazed by the celebrations around him just made them feel good, like some sense of childhood innocence still remained in Mad Dawg and it was finally revealing itself.

" _That was poetic."_

 **It's called character development. You think after all the crap you went through you'd just walk away unchanged?**

" _Meh. Fair point."_

"So, we're more into the actual celebration of the New Year now." Mei remarked as the continued towards the Lijiang Tower where several other heroes were waiting for them, as they had all agreed to meet there, as someone else apparently wanted to meet them there. "Yesterday families would celebrate with reunion dinners, and today is the beginning of the fifteen-day celebration."

"Fifteen days?!" Mad Dawg asked, shocked. "That's how long your new year's parties are?!"

"You didn't know that?" Emily asked, looking over to the mutant with slight distrust. This wasn't help with the look Mad Dawg gave her.

"I grew up in a Train Junkyard. New Years to me meant several bottles of tequila or vodka, then waking up without clothes on in the middle of nowhere. That or dumping one of my friends in the middle of nowhere and then eating their food." He saw Emily's (understandably) surprised face and added: "My life is weird."

Emily looked to Mercy, who seemed equally saddened and shocked. But neither said anything. Hanzo and Genji looked to Mad Dawg, and the latter of the two chuckled slightly.

As they walked into Lijiang Tower's courtyard, Mad Dawg noticed an absurd number of boxes full of firecrackers piled near a truck. Now that he thought about it, there were boxes of them everywhere!

"Junkrat would love this…" He remarked aloud. "All the explosives everywhere…"

"If he even wanted to make an honest living, he should consider making fireworks, I believe he would find it to be to his strength." Hanzo stated as he noticed Mad dawg looking at the fireworks.

"Or, everything would burn to the ground." Genji added. "Probably the latter."

There was some laughter as they kept walking. Mei was telling Mad Dawg about traditions and meanings behind several of the key aspects of the celebration, Hanzo and Genji just seemed to be watch the people pass them by, but Emily's body language made it clear something was off.

"You alright love?" Tracer asked, looking over to her girlfriend.

"…Is he okay?" Emily finally asked, Tracer and Mercy seemed confused then realized who she was talking about.

"Mad Dawg's been through a lot recently." Tracer began, understating Emily's nervousness. "He's made mistakes, no one will claim he didn't. But he's trying his best to make amends and do better."

"After what you told me about what happened, how do you know he's not going to kill us?" She asked quietly. Mercy seemed hurt by the question, but couldn't blame her.

"Give the poor dear a chance, aside from us, he has no one." She finally said.

Emily sighed, but nodded. The three women followed the rest of the group up the stairs into Lijiang Tower. As they entered, Mad Dawg saw Reinhardt, Ana, Pharah, Junkrat, Lúcio, Hana, Solider: 76, Winston, McCree and Zarya were talking, waiting for them.

"Hello everyone!" Mei said happily with a wave as they entered the building. The other noticed and came over to greet them.

"Xīnnián kuàilè!" Junkrat replied, Mad Dawg noted with a coy smile that he now had several fireworks strapped to his chest where his bombs would normally be.

"How's everyone doing?" Mei asked in her chipper tone that could give Tracer a run for her money.

"Fine, things are great." The crusader replied, looking out over the way that the tower had been decorated for the celebration.

"I'll admit, it feels a bit weird." Winston commented, pushing his glasses back into place, Mad Dawg gave him a confused look and he explained. "I mean, Lijiang was in charge of the Lunar Horizon Project after all…"

"Ah." Mad Dawg nodded. Winston hadn't told him too much about the Lunar Horizon Colonies, but from what he had been told (and possibly seen when he got bored and hacked into the central computer) is that things didn't go well. Mad Dawg had previously decided not to ask as a gesture of friendship, and now he chose not to ask because he understood that talking about one's past could be… complicated.

" _Yeah, nine chapters of complications…"_ Mad Dawg thought with a mental eye roll.

"So, Mei." Ana said looking over to the two. "What exactly do we do now?"

"Well, the fireworks will begin soon, and after that there will be a time of offering to our ancestors, then after that it's mostly music and the parade." Mei listed of several of the events that would be happening soon.

"Sounds cool! Where do we watch it?" Junkrat asked. Clearly interested in the fireworks.

"You all watch the greatest firework show on earth from the penthouse of Lijiang Tower!" A new voice called form the other side of the room. The heroes turned in confusion, not knowing who was speaking, (except for a few) and saw an old man walking into the room with a walking stick and a huge grin on his face.

"Don Kim!" Mad Dawg shouted to his friend before laughing. The two met half-way and high-fived before chest-bumping. Some of the heroes smiled at this, Genji and Hanzo were relieved to see their grandfather not surrounded by hitmen, and some of the others were confused as to who this old man was.

"You know this man?" Zarya asked.

"Yes, he is our grandfather." Hanzo spoke up. "May I introduce to you Don Kim Senshi Shimada."

Introductions all around took place and after they were finished, the group made their way towards the elevator. However, one thing that was brought up during the introductions still seemed unanswered.

"You have his _heart_ in your body?" Zarya asked for the third or fourth time, still in disbelief that what she was told was possible.

"Yup." The old man replied with a nod. "Thanks to him, I'm feel like I'm twenty-two again! It's awesome!"

"Then how are you…" She trailed off looking over to Mad Dawg.

"I think I grew another one." He replied with a shrug. "Honestly I have no idea how I survived that."

"The idiots on the medical team hooked your body up to a car battery." Don Kim explained. Shocking Zarya and making Mercy very angry. Granted, they didn't seem to see it, but she was _pissed_. "I don't know _how,_ and I'm pretty sure you murdered all of them before I could ask. And after that we managed to get a transplant for you."

"Oh, that's what happened?" Mad Dawg asked as the elevator doors closed, taking Mad Dawg, Genji, Mercy, Tracer and Emily up. "I honestly don't remember much from when that happened aside from the battery being in my open chest, and running naked though a hospital." He paused for a moment then added: "Also, something about a stale sandwich being used as a knife and peeing on an electric fence for some reason… Was that because I had to re-charge the battery?"

"No." Don Kim shook his head. "For one, you somehow stabbed one of the rouge guards with a stale sandwich, and as for the other thing, while we were waiting for the transplant to arrive, I bet you ten bucks you couldn't pee on an electric fence and walk away. You said 'Hold my sake' and pissed on it."

"What happened?" Genji asked, genuinely curious.

"The idiot electrocuted himself and was out for two hours." Don Kim flatly replied, getting a laugh from Hana, Genji and Tracer. "Honestly it worked out great because we were able to cut him open and give him the transplant."

This got a few laughs until Hanzo thought about what was said.

"Wait, what kind of hospital has an electric fence near it?" He remarked.

"Oh, we weren't at a hospital." Don Kim replied. "We needed to wait for the replacement heart to arrive, so we snuck onto someone's farm and went cattle tipping."

"I do remember that." Mad Dawg nodded. "We ended up pissing off a bull and running like hell to get away from it."

Emily gave Lena a look that said _We need to talk._ Tracer tried to give her a reassuring smile, but saw something in her lover's eyes that meant she was serious. Eventually, they reached the top of the building and walked out into a lavish room. Off to one side there was a bar with a sleek marble countertop and gold trim seats lining the bar. In the centre of the room was a glass floor which housed a fish tank with many colourful koi swam about, the tank also had several holes in it which led to a small track which looped around the room, allowing the fish to swim freely and for guests to see. The room was lit by a balance of traditional lights and candles with several wall-spanning, hand-painted images of flowers ordaining the room. Two velvet semicircle couches sat just on the edge of the glass circle facing one another, with pots with peony's sitting next to them. As the heroes began to look around the penthouse, Tracer looked around for a place where she could talk with Emily, whose body language was one of fear.

"Um, we'll be right back!" Tracer said with a smile as the two left to go find the washroom.

"Through the doors and to the left." Don Kim simply replied, pointing in the direction of the washrooms, assuming that's what they needed.

"Thank you!"

When the two got to a safe distance, Emily turned to look at Lena, and this time, she seemed to be a mixture of scared and angry.

"I'm sorry, I don't feel safe around him… Mad Dawg that is." Emily shook her head, Tracer seemed surprised by this.

"But… Luv… You've always seemed to get along so well with him before!"

"Did you not hear what that old man said about him?! He's a killer! And he dosen't seem to care!" Emily retorted, slightly angered now. "Add to that the things you told me he did a few months ago…"

"Em. There's so much more to him than you understand…" Tracer tried to explain, feeling a mixture of awkward and nervous.

"Then tell me what I'm missing!" Emily shot back, slightly annoyed.

"I can't!" Tracer defender herself.

"Why?! You're scared he'll hurt you if you anger him!? Lena, I love you, but I hate when you do this. I know that this job means sometimes you made hard decisions and deal with people with little or no morals. But what always set you and your team apart was that you did have morals! You weren't like those Talon freaks you fight! Why are you still defending him? Don't you remember what he did to you and the others?"

Tracer felt torn, not only did she feel a great deal of pain at the 'Talon Freaks' remark, but she wasn't sure how to respond to it. There was the trust she had with Mad Dawg, the young boy who was made to be a monster yet fought to be human that she promised herself she'd help in any way possible, and then there was Emily, the woman who loved her through everything. The accident, Overwatch, everything.

"Emily… if you understood what that poor dear has been through-" She began.

"Stop talking to me like I'm a child!" Emily cut her off, tears beginning to form in her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. "Lena, I love you more than anything. Nothing can change that, but I don't feel safe knowing some little psychopath is supposedly watching your back! What if he decides to turn rogue again? I don't want the others to have to stop him from trying to eat you!"

"He won't." Tracer finally replied in a quiet tone.

"How do you know that?"

"Because you haven't heard him scream." Tracer replied, suddenly seeming downcast at an unpleasant memory.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Emily asked, confused.

"There's been a few nights, anyone in Gibraltar can hear him. He's wakes up screaming bloody murder. But whenever someone tries to check on him, either he's fallen asleep or he's faking it. He refuses to talk about it with anyone, not McCree, not Mercy, no one." The pilot sighed then continued. "Winston had Athena track him anytime he left the base or went to a higher level, we weren't sure what he was trying to do, and we didn't know how to help him. I don't expect you to understand, but Mad Dawg's had some truly _horrific_ things happen to him. Things that have destroyed any chance he had at living normally, and with us, that's his normal."

Emily looked shocked at Tracer before Lena continued.

"Mad Dawg messed up, I'll admit to it even if I don't want to. And yes, he's killed in the past. But luv, you need to keep in mind he was abandoned on the streets as a little boy! He only killed when it was his life or theirs."

"And you think that justifies his actions?" Emily asked, slightly in disbelief at how hard Lena was trying to defend Mad Dawg. "The fact that he had some horrible upbringing excuses all his misdeeds?"

"No." She answered honestly. "Emily, Mad Dawg's mum is Moira O'Deorain."

The reaction took a few moments, but Emily seemed to pale, both in in realization of where Mad Dawg came from, and the comment concerning Talon she made earlier.

"W-what?" She finally stammered.

"Mad Dawg is Moira's son." Tracer sighed, deciding to give her the truth. "He was genetically engineered by her with her DNA, things… happened… and he escaped. That's partially why he's violent, he was made to be that way."

"I'm sorry, you didn't think that wouldn't have been important to tell me _beforehand!?_ " Emily demanded, genuine anger in her voice. "Do you not realize what you're defending? He's a Talon bred mutant!"

"He's still human!" Tracer shot back, angrier than she intended. "We didn't know until recently what he was, and he's suffered a lot more than anyone I know, yet still tries to do his best to be good! So, I think I could afford a little sympathy for the poor dear!" After she finished, Tracer finally saw the pained look on Emily's face, a mixture of anger and betrayal.

"You said it yourself, he was _made_ to be violent. So, let me ask you this, when he turns on you again, and you don't come home. Do you expect me to give him the same sympathy?" She finally asked, tears now running down her face, before going into a stall and slamming the door, locking it behind her. Tracer stood there shocked, unsure of what to do.

Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes had arrived and were currently relaxing on the couches or talking. Mad Dawg, the Shimada trio and Lúcio were chilling at the bar, sipping sake and shooting the breeze.

"So, how goes the hero business?" Don Kim finally asked.

"Fine enough." Genji shrugged. "It took a while, but I believe that Overwatch is where I was called to be."

"Called by that angelic medic am I right?" Don Kim added with a coy smile before high-fiving Mad Dawg.

"You should be thankful the lanterns are already red." Genji remarked, staring directly into Mad Dawg's eyes. "Because they will soon be coated in your blood." He knew the only way his grandfather knew about that joke was because of Mad Dawg.

"Whoa, calm down there Genj. He was just kidding!" Lúcio interjected, trying to stop this from getting worse. Only for the cyborg to turn his head to look at him.

"Do you wish to have the same fate as him?" He suddenly asked.

"Hey man, I'm just talking." The musician replied nervously.

"Perhaps you should stop."

"Alright, enough kids." Don Kim said with a dismissive wave.

"So, what have you been up to?" Lúcio asked, looking to Don Kim.

"Sitting in a hot tub full of money." Don Kim replied with a shrug. "I helped found the Lunar Horizons Colony and own a decent amount of Nano Cola's stock. I'd say I've done enough in my life, I'm fine with sleeping in till three in the afternoon and then doing nothing all day long."

"Yeah, until you call me up and we go hit the clubs!" Mad Dawg laughed.

"Oh, hell yeah!" Don Kim laughed. "I think the best part about it is the looks we get from _everyone_." He said matter-of-factly. "They're all like 'Why's this kid bringing his grandpa to a night club?' or 'How can this old guy keep going?'"

"Or, 'Someone should stop serving that old guy, that's his third bottle of vodka'." Mad Dawg added with a laugh. "Or the always popular 'Why's there a one-hundred-and-fifty-year-old-man at the turntable?'"

"Bah! With the ol' ticker you gave me and the Shimada sobriety, nothing can stop me!" Don Kim laughed, patting his chest.

"Is that why you always fell asleep in the car whenever we were going anywhere?" Hanzo asked with a raised brow. Kim coughed then looked outside.

"Hey! The fireworks are starting soon!"

Pretty soon, everyone gathered by the balcony to watch the fireworks. In the town below, they could hear people talking, then the first few went up, exploding into a dazzling light show of red and orange.

"It's beautiful…" Mad Dawg smiled, eyes wide with wonder.

"Eh, I've seen better." Junkrat shrugged.

The next one that went up was a small flare-looking light that fizzed out for a moment, then exploded into a giant array of streams going in all directions with a thunderous _Bang!_ Mad Dawg hadn't been expecting it and stumbled backwards, accidentally falling to the ground. This got a good amount of laughter from everyone as McCree helped him back up.

"Don't worry Dawg, they're just fireworks." McCree smirked.

"I wanna throw you off this balcony…" He muttered.

A stream of fireworks was fired up, one after another, creating a colourful arc which seemed to span the entire city, a mixture of blue and purple illuminated the night sky as a string of explosions rang out.

"Honestly, one of my favourite parts of the Lunar New Year was always the fireworks." Don Kim remarked.

"Same." Mei nodded with a grin.

A few more sets of fireworks went off, they were extravagant, spreading out in all different directions and all sorts of colours. The heroes watched, enjoying the spectacle before them. Mad Dawg felt relieved, things were finally seeming back to normal. Another firework went up, exploding with a loud popping sound and the streams seeming to twirl back towards the ground before fizzling out.

"How's that for fireworks?" McCree asked aloud.

"This is beautiful." Zarya remarked with a smile.

"It is." Ana nodded in agreement. "The world together as one, peaceful and happy."

 _ **KABOOM!**_

Suddenly, a sizable explosion went off near the centre of the town. A large fireball rising from the ground and several other explosions going off in nearby buildings. The heroes looked on in horror as screams of terror could be heard from the top of the tower as fires started spreading.

"HOLY SHIT!" Hana screamed in terror. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!"

"Did some fireworks get lit at the wrong time?!" Pharah asked, horrified at what was just seen, but everyone knew what had really happened.

"Nah mate. Those weren't fireworks." Junkrat shook his head, seeming uncharacteristically serious. "That was plastic explosives, and it was _definitely_ intentional."

"We need to get down there, NOW!" Solider: 76 ordered.

"Dawg, what the hell?!" Everyone heard Don Kim yell, and turned just in time to see Mad Dawg jump off the balcony. Hana screamed in fear and rushed forward to catch him, but he was already diving head-first towards the ground.

"He's gonna get himself killed!" The game screamed in terror.

"He'll be alright." McCree commented. "He's done this before."

Hana shot him an angry look, but any other words she wanted to say were silenced by the urgency to get to the square, right away.

"What happened?!" Emily exclaimed suddenly re-appearing with Tracer.

"Someone's setting off bombs in the square!" Genji quickly filled them in as the heroes crammed into the elevator and the rest headed for the stairs. "Mad Dawg's already on his way there, we need to go now!"

Tracer was about to blink off to race to help anyone who needed it, but was stopped when Emily grabbed her hand.

"Luv, I need to go!" Tracer protested.

"Promise me you'll be safe." Emily said with pleading eyes.

"Of course, love." Tracer nodded before the two briefly kissed. It wasn't much, but it was reassuring to the both of them.

"Go help them!" Emily ordered, and Tracer took off after the others, blinking to catch up with the rest of the team.

On the outside of the building, Mad Dawg was still free falling towards the ground, he struggled to get something out from his backpack to help slow him down and cursed when the bag slipped off his back and flew upwards and away from him. Now, he was careening towards the ground with no way of slowing down.

" _Damn it…"_ He internally cursed as he closed his eyes and focused, he needed to get this right, but he couldn't let it take control. He felt instincts in his mind begin to jolt about, trying to decide on something. The ground was getting closer and Mad Dawg needed to slow down _now._ Finally, he felt his hand spastically shaking and begin to change. With all the strength he could, he slammed his paw-hand mix into the glass, his claws digging into it and scraping against it. He continued his descent, but greatly slowed down. Eventually, he came to a stop and dropped the last few feet, landing roughly on a garden bed. He growled as he felt several shards of glass embedded in his hand and arm but knew he had to go. Jumping up, he yanked the glass form his hand and took off at speeds that would make Tracer jealous. He jumped onto a garbage bin and launched himself off of it, he ran along a billboard and then jumped again, utilizing the training he had with Genji. He curled up and shot through an open window, he rolled across the floor and launched himself out the open window on the other side, startling the family who lived in the apartment he just soared through.

"Sorry! Hero business!" He shouted as he landed on a roof and kept running. He could see the fire and smoke clearly now. While it wasn't as bad as he feared, it still happened, and that wasn't bad, that was TERRIFYING.

" _Was it Talon?"_ He mused as he continued to run, now seeing Genji and Tracer out of the corner of his eye. _"But why the hell would they attack a public celebration? To get to Mei? To get to Genji? To be a bunch of dicks?"_ The sad truth was any one of those answers could work, and that didn't sit well with Mad Dawg. Weaving his way through a crowd of people, he came to a stop and looked on in horror at the burning buildings before him. Thankfully, it seemed like most of the people had gotten out, but the terror was no less apparent. Crying children were being held close by their parents and humans and Omnics were scrambling to find one another.

"Genji! We need to move fast! There still might be civvies trapped in the building!" Mad Dawg shouted over the screaming at the cyborg who dashed forward and climbed into one of the buildings. Meanwhile, Mad Dawg ran forward to help an Omnic trapped under some rubble. He strained to life the stone, but he couldn't.

"Leave me!" The Omnic exclaimed. "Others need help!"

"I ain't leaving anyone behind!" Mad Dawg retorted, straining aggressively. He could feel the creature inside him stirring, clawing at the 'cage' it was trapped in to get out. Mad Dawg couldn't let that happen. Not here. Not now. Suddenly, the stone was lifted and tossed away, Mad Dawg looked to his left and was relieved to see Reinhardt and the others had arrived, all quickly setting out to help in any way they could.

"Junkrat, you go look for any other explosives, McCree, keep an eye out for anyone suspicious, Reinhardt, Zarya, you're on rubble removal!" Solider: 76 was barking out orders and the agents were running to do what they could.

Mad Dawg looked around, feeling disoriented by the chaos. Suddenly, he felt a dark presence, and a familiar, twisted voice came out from nowhere.

"yOU cAN't SaVe THeM aLl, FReAk…"

" _NO. NOT NOW."_ Mad Dawg began shaking violently, this couldn't happen! Not now! He closed his eyes and looked down, taking a few deep breaths. He couldn't give into fear now, this was the worst possible time. No, he couldn't and he sure as hell wouldn't. It was hero time. When he looked back up, the first thing he saw a small boy seeming lost, and as Mad Dawg moved forward to help him, the sound of a twisted cracking sound could be heard, and Mad Dawg saw one of the beams supporting a large dragon decoration had snapped and was falling towards him. The boy seemed paralyzed with fear beforehand, and didn't even see the wood coming towards him.

"KID!" Mad Dawg shouted, suddenly running in both his hands and feet to close the distance, he dove forward and wrapped his arms around the small boy. The two shot forward and narrowly avoided being crushed. Mad Dawg felt something sharp in his back but knew right now, this Kid was more important. He could hear a woman's screams of terror and assumed it was his mother.

"You okay?" He asked, after sliding across the ground and coming to a stop, breathing heavily, looking down at the boy. The boy was not mute and numb, clearly scared out of his wits, and Mad Dawg didn't blame him. But from a quick inspection, he seemed unharmed. A little shaken and a few small cuts, but nothing too bad. A woman, and Omnic and a teenage girl ran forward as Mad Dawg slowly pulled himself up, the boy ran to the family and they hugged him tightly. Crying in relief that he was okay. Mad Dawg smiled at the scene, briefly forgetting what was happening around them.

"Thank you." The Omnic repeated over and over, relieved that their son was okay. "Thank you so much sir."

"No prob-ow." Mad Dawg began but stopped when he felt a sharp pain in his lower torso. Looking down he saw a large splinter of wood was embedded in his back and dug in deep. "Crap…"

"Mad Dawg! Are you alright?!" Mercy exclaimed as she rushed over to him.

"Yeah, I'll live." He nodded before nodding to the family. "You may wanna check the kid, I think he's fine, but still. You're the doctor."

Mercy nodded and got down to the boy's level, talking with him as Mad Dawg ripped the wood out from his back, then let out a string of profanities in pain, causing the mother to cover the boy's ears in shock, and Mercy to bite her lip, slightly embarrassed.

"Sorry…" He grumbled.

Making his way back towards the others, he saw the fire department was now here, doing with they could to put out the fires, along with Mei who had her cryo-gear and was trying to help any way she could.

"Who the hell would do this?!" Junkrat asked aloud, shocked at what had happened. Sure, he and Roadhog were violent criminals who blew stuff up all the time, and had killed more than a few people, but they would _never_ do something like this. This was the kind of stupidity that even Junkrat had to admit was wrong.

"I dunno man." Mad Dawg sighed, feeling useless. He continued looking for anyway he could help, then he saw something slightly in the distance. He slowly made his way over to one of the temples where people would give offerings to their ancestors, and he saw something, a symbol, one he knew all too well. His blood ran cold as he looked at it, spray painted on the floor before him in a blood-red colour were two dragons, making a circle.

"Holy crap…" Mad Dawg breathed, realizing who was behind the attack. "It was the Shimada's…"


	42. Family and Loyalty

Hana was terrified, she had seen wars before, she had fought her way through battlefields, heck, she stopped a Talon attack on her hometown single-handedly! It wasn't the lack of her mech that frightened her, it was the fear that they wouldn't be able to help everyone in time. The Heroes of Overwatch were working full-tilt to clear debris, round up lost stragglers, and fight the fires. Zarya was practically chucking chunks of stone and wood left and right, clear paths for firefighters and medical aid which had made record time in arriving. Mei was assisting with her cryo-gear and Mercy was providing emergency medical care, Genji and Hanzo were jumping rooftop to rooftop searching for anyone still trapped in buildings, and they were rescuing anyone who needed it.

"Find the people that did this, and bring them to me!" Don Kim barked at two bodyguards who had accompanied him to the town square. The old man was breathing heavily, clearly having exerted himself despite his, or Mad Dawg's to be exact, heart. The two men nodded and ran off into an alley way, Don Kim cursing in Japanese under his breath. "Are you alright?" He asked, shooting a glance over to Hana.

"Yes." The gamer nodded.

"Good." He nodded. "Mad Dawg'd kill me if any of his friends got hurt… Stick with the others, we'll get to the bottom of this." He added before using his dragon cane and making his way towards the others, seeming to look for something. Hana frowned, knowing she couldn't freeze, and quickly took off to try and help anyone that needed it.

Hanzo scanned the valley side from a rooftop, searching for anyone or anything that could give them a clue to who did this. He focused his hearing and listened intently, but all he heard was fire and panic all around him. He cursed aloud, knowing the attackers were probably using this as a way to make a clean escape if they hadn't died in the explosion… Speaking of explosions, He heard and odd thumping behind him as Junkrat approached.

"Nothin' mate." The Junker growled. "Whoever the 'ell did this, did it right. The plastic explosives were detonated from a distance, reducing the chance of being caught. And anythin' we coulda' used got burned up in the fires."

"Does this seem like anyone's specific motif? Someone you may have met in your past?"

"Nah mate. Before join' you guys, Roadie an'I didn't work with no one." Junkrat shook his head. "Sure, we did a few hired gigs, but nothing like this. This wasn't a distraction for a robbery, this was a message. A threat."

"For once, I agree." Hanzo remarked, his tone cold and bitter. He looked over to another building to see Genji who signed something to him, Hanzo nodded and replied, the cyber-ninja jumping off the roof.

"The 'ell was that?" Junkrat asked bewildered.

"My brother hasn't found anyone in the buildings over there." Hanzo explained. "But that dosen't mean there aren't people who still need help."

As Winston moved a wooden pillar under a fallen roof to hold it up, he finally saw Mad Dawg, staring at something, and genuinely shaking in either anger of fear. Knowing this may be important, the scientist made his way over, but cleared his throat a few feet away so he wouldn't end up getting surprise attacked by the mutant.

"Have you found something Mad Dawg?" Winston asked, Mad Dawg didn't turn around, he just kept looking at the ground.

"Kid! You okay?!" Don Kim called as he finally arrived at where Mad Dawg was. "I saw you jump and then-"

That was as far as Don Kim got as Mad Dawg whirled around in anger, his eyes showing nothing but rage.

" _ **YOU."**_ He growled, pointing to Don Kim.

"Me?" The old man replied, bewildered.

"Look." Was all Mad Dawg said, pointing to the Shimada Family insignia painted on the floor. The old man and the gorilla looked puzzled, then confusion turned to shock, and in Winston's case, anger.

"So, this was your plan? Keep us far away from the town so you can set bombs off? To what end?!" Winston immediately accused Don Kim.

"Whoa there Harambe. Chill the hell out." Don Kim turned to Winston seeming annoyed at the accusation. "Why would I want to attack the Lunar Celebration?! I love this time of year!"

"Yeah, but you also fund the festivities…" Mad Dawg mused, now turning to the pair, seeming to be deep in thought. "It would be easy, during construction of the fireworks or the stage, just slip some C4 in and no one would know the difference until it was too late."

"Oh, c'mon! You too Dawg?!" Don Kim exclaimed exasperated. "I thought _you'd_ be on my side!"

"I'm on the side of truth, and right now, I've got three reasons to believe it wasn't you, and three reasons to believe it was you." Mad Dawg answered calmly.

"Look, Dawg. You of all people should know a thing or two about something not being the way it looks on the surface!" Don Kim tried to reason, but saw he had somewhat angered Mad Dawg. "Ooh. Sorry."

"No. You're right." Mad Dawg shook his head, he then pulled out his phone and started a new chat.

 _Super Shimada Bros. I need you here NOW. –MD_

 _What happened? –G_

 _I found your squads symbol. DK is claimin he don't know nuthin –MD_

 _Above you –H_

As Hanzo dropped from the ceiling (somehow having gotten in) Genji dashed forward with his cybernetic enhancements and came to a stop next to Winston.

"Check it." Mad Dawg said, pointing to the symbol on the ground. The brothers took a long look at it, a wave of emotions hitting them at the same time. Fear, anger, confusion, regret. "Does this look familiar?"

"Yes. It is the Shimada Sigil." Genji answered with a nod. "You think our Grandfather was behind this?"

"Damn it, I wasn't!" Don Kim shouted before coughing. "I spent the past three days in Busan for a board meeting with Nano Cola!"

"If you can prove that, it would be helpful." Winston sighed. "Do you think someone is trying to frame you? Set this up to look like a Shimada attack?"

"That's the problem Ceaser." Dom Kim mused. "The Shimada's don't tend to use explosives. It's way too noisy and draws too much attention. It would make sense that this was someone else, maybe those Talon guys?"

"But why?" Mad Dawg partially growled, annoyed at how it seemed like he was missing something so simple. "If it _was_ Talon, what would they gain from this? From the time I got to know Doomfist-"

"You got to know Doomfist?" Kim cut Mad Dawg off suddenly.

"Long story, tell you later." Mad Dawg shot back. "He made it clear that at least to him, he valued strength and strategic attacks, this isn't his style…"

"They're terrorists Dawg." Genji spoke up. "I don't think they _care._ "

By now, some of the other heroes had made their way over to make sure Mad Dawg was okay, and Winston was explaining to them what had happened. Meanwhile, Hanzo seemed to be looking closely at the logo, something seemed… different. Drawing a sonic arrow, Hanzo shot the arrow into the center of the circle, the blue sphere expanded outwards and a series of letters seemed to appear, as if painted in invisible ink. Hanzo quickly read it before the light faded away.

" _Rōjin wa ochi, wakamono wa agarudeshou."_ He thought. _"The old shall fall, the young shall rise."_

Quickly passing this onto his brother, Mad Dawg seemed to be writing something in a journal, turning around as he wrote.

"What are you doin' love?" Tracer couldn't help but ask.

"Getting a sketch of where this happened…" Mad Dawg answered as he kept drawing. "If I have one regret from what happened… recently, it's that I didn't think strategically, I'm trying to think of any way the perpetrators could've gotten in or out. Also, before you ask, I ain't taking pictures because I don't know if Sombra's involved."

"Smart thinking." Pharah remarked, a tone of genuine surprise in her voice.

"Thank you." Mad Dawg replied, sketching the building's frame shape into his journal before moving towards the wall, seemingly inspecting them.

"So how do we know it wasn't Don Shimada over here who's orchestrating the attack?" Solider: 76 suddenly asked, getting down to business.

"Oh, for the love of sake… How many times do I need to-" Don Kim began but stopped when he was caught off guard by a coughing fit. "I had _nothing to do with this!"_

"Well, this party ended about as well as Wrench's Fouth Of July Celebration years ago…" Mad Dawg muttered. "Okay, first things first, is everyone okay?"

"Everyone's present and accounted for." 76 replied with a nod.

"Anyone injured?"

"Mercy's helping the civvies an' other than that. We're all good." Junkrat stated.

"Okay, so we know there was some sort of attack and that the Shimada clan symbol was found nearby." McCree began to list off what had happened. "For the past half an hour or so, the only three Shimada's we know were with us, and at no point left to make any sort of phone call."

"Thank you, Clint Eastwood!" Don Kim sighed exasperated, thankful someone wasn't accusing him.

"Okay, Genji, Hanzo, Dawg, and Kim, you're with me." McCree nodded. "We need to talk."

As the five began to walk away, the rest of the agents looked to one another, unsure of what to do.

"Are we just going to let them walk away?" Pharah asked.

"If they leave the building, then we follow them. But I trust Jesse, I think he has a plan that will prove helpful." Morrison replied, slightly uneasy with what was happening, or perhaps that was just his nerves from the recent attack.

Once the five were a decent distance, Jesse took the pipe he was smoking out from his mouth and exhaled some smoke.

"Okay, the Shimada insignia is there. Like it or not, it's there." He flatly stated. "do any of you know _anything_ about this?"

"Of course not!" Genji exclaimed, slightly aggravated at the question. "I've spent the past few years trying to be better than I was! I-"

"That's why I'm asking." McCree cut him off. "More importantly, I'm asking _him_." He finished, pointing to Don Kim. The old man scowled, but eventually sighed, defeatedly.

"Look, the Shimada's have a… spotty history. I won't deny that. But before I say anything else, can you guarantee that this stays with the five of us?"

McCree cast a glance to Mad Dawg, who nodded.

"Alright then. Spill the beans."

"We used to sell drugs and weapons." Don Kim stated. "We've done dealings with Talon years ago. I mean, we kidnapped this dude and used him as an organ harvest plant so I could get a heart transplant." He motioned over to Mad Dawg. "But after Sorijo passed away, we kind of fell off the map. Hell, Genji did a decent job taking down the last few drug plants we had. Nowadays, I'm on the straight and mostly narrow. Sure, I've sold some good shit, and may have bet on Mad Dawg in a fight club, but other than that, I'm retired."

"So, is this revenge? Some member of the clan who's pissed off about the dismantlement?" Mad Dawg asked.

Don Kim seemed to be thinking about it, until Hanzo spoke up.

"Hidden in the paint was a message. The old shall fall, the young shall rise." He commented.

"What the hell does that mean?" Mad Dawg asked, the weight of what had been happening seeming to catch up with him as sadness seemed to be taking hold.

"Hey, hey, kid. Look at me." Don Kim ordered, suddenly grabbing Mad Dawg's shoulders. "Look at my eyes."

"I'm tired man…" Mad Dawg sighed. "I don't know what to do…"

" _No."_ Don Kim suddenly said with a surprising amount of force. "I need you here. I need you to focus. Just. Breathe. Can you do that?"

Mad Dawg's breath was stuttering now, but he seemed to be trying his best to calm down. His hands were shaking as he made fists to try and calm himself.

"Just in and out, that's all." Don Kim instructed. "The air is like sake, just in and out."

"That dosen't make sense." Mad Dawg said with a slight laugh, seeming to collect himself.

"Neither does what's going on, but we need to figure it out nonetheless."

Hanzo looked to McCree, slack-jawed, and McCree just shrugged with a shake of his head.

"Okay. Kim, is there anyone you know would want you dead? Like, an old rival, or a member of the Russian mob?"

"Really? The Russian Mob?" Don Kim turned to McCree, his tone one of disappointment. "You really think we'd throw in with the Russian Mob?! The Italian one, maybe, but not the Russians."

Genji seemed to be deep in thought, then let out a somber sigh, as if he was about to admit to something, or realized something important.

"I think… I think I know who is behind this, and more importantly, why." The green cyborg ninja stated.

"Yeah? Who?" Mad Dawg asked.

"Kenichi Shimada. Our Uncle."


	43. This Was A Bad Idea

Jack Morrison stood still, watching the three Shimadas, McCree, and Mad Dawg standing in a corner talking. It seemed like the perfect storm. Three members of a crime syndicate, an ex-member of the Deadlock Gang, and a Talon-bred weapon. The only thing that kept him from taking Kim into custody for his previous crimes and potential involvement was McCree. He knew that Jesse and Mad Dawg had a very strong bond, almost like brothers, and he could tell McCree wasn't taking sides in this conversation. Finally, Mad Dawg shook his head and walked away, resting a hand against a beam before yelling angered and punching said beam, splintering part of it.

"Do you need me to calm him down?" Mercy asked.

"No." Jack shook his head. "Right now, any information those two can get, we need."

"I'm surprised you trust him to do this." The medic remarked.

"I trust Jesse, Mad Dawg… We're getting there." Morrison answered honestly. He was still a little bit wary of Mad Dawg, but he did believe that he wouldn't betray them. He just wasn't like that. Mercy sighed and returned to making sure that the agents were okay.

"Okay. So, you think your Uncle is behind this attack?" McCree asked, raising a brow over to Hanzo. "Because… why?"

"I don't know." The archer shook his head. "If this was about instilling fear, then he's succeeded, if it's about revenge for the dismantlement of the Shimada Crime Syndicate, then why would he attack the festival? He has no way of knowing we'd be here, and what would it do?"

"It would let the people know that the Dragon Clan are not to be taken lightly." Genji reasoned darkly. "It could be not a message to the people, but to other groups who may try to move in and establish a footing here."

"Like Talon." McCree continued with a scowl.

"Or, and here's a thought. Maybe it _wasn't_ the Shimada's." Mad Dawg remarked, walking back to the group. "Back when Virus came after me, he tried to make the attacks seem to be instrumented by Talon to prove Overwatch was weak, as well as keeping himself out of it all so he could get revenge on Talon by take their files so he could sell them."

"That's why he did it?" Don Kim asked, surprised. "I thought it was just vengeance…"

"Mostly, but he seemed to formulate a plan to play everyone like a fiddle." Mad Dawg sighed. "Look, I'm not saying the Shimada's aren't behind this, but we need to think about this from all potential angles."

"I think we've kept them waiting long enough." Genji stated, motioning over to the other heroes. "You two keep an eye on Kim, Mad Dawg, get some air. We need you to focus right now, if you lose control-"

"Yeah, I know." Mad Dawg grumbled walking off and sitting on the temple steps. His mind was all over the place, on the one hand, this wasn't his fault. As far as he knew, and that was a nice break, but on the other hand, this still had happened.

"SaD, iSN't it?" A voice came, his head snapping up, Mad Dawg saw Virus leaning on a railing. It had been months, but Mad Dawg finally got a good look at him once again. His mask was still fused onto his face, the lower left side of it was gone, the skin melted away with a chunk of bone sticking out from his jaw, and the rest of the skin burned and scarred. He wore the same hoodie and skinny black pants he wore when they first met, but they seemed to have been chewed apart by worms and maggots. His raspy breathing could be heard, as if his lungs were damaged. "ONCe agAiN, whEReVer you gO, DEAth FolLOws."

"Piss. Off." Mad Dawg scowled, his hands grasping onto his head. "You're dead."

"INDeeD, anD NoW, so ArE sO mANy iNNoCenTS… ChILDren, nOW ORPhanS… SoUNd faMIlIAR?"

"What do you want?" Mad Dawg finally asked.

"NOThIng, jUSt tO waTCH yOu sUfFeR."

"What do you mean? I'm not…" Mad Dawg began but trailed off as he saw what seemed to be a purplish shadow overtake the city. Mad Dawg stood up and stumbled forward slightly, his eyes widening in shock as he saw Beijing slowly changing into King's Row. Mad Dawg looked down, seeing he was far younger than he currently was. Looking behind him, he saw that he was standing just outside of the power plant with a loud alarm blairing.

" _Oh God."_ He mentally thought. Realizing what was happening.

Before he could say a word, he heard a woman scream in horror, looking to his left, Mad Dawg saw a huge collision, as if the automated street vehicles had all began moving at once and had crashed into one another. Sparks were flying and people were running in terror. Mad Dawg could see several people who had been crossing the street that were caught off guard and were now hit by the vehicles. Off in the distance, Mad Dawg could see the bright white lights of the hospital finally re-activating.

"No…" Mad Dawg mumbled. "Nonononononono… I…i…I…I…I.."

Virus' twisted, deep laughter echoed in his ears and seemed to bounce off the walls above the cries of pain and terror.

"ThIs… Is nO diFFeRent frEAk…" Virus mused as he appeared in front of the small Mad Dawg, grabbing him by the throat and tightening his grip as he held up to his burned mask. "YoU'Re a dAMn MOSNtER. YoU cAUsEd ThIS."

"You're dead!" Mad Dawg weakly managed to get out, feeling fear begin to overtake him. "This isn't real!"

"SUrE it Is… BETA." Virus cackled, pulling the remains of his mask off, showing Mad Dawg his twisted face. "THIs wAS BeCAusE oF yOU… IT WAS aLwaYS bECAuSE oF YoU!" Dropping him to the ground, Virus began to laugh insanely as he turned to smoke, leaving Mad Dawg watching in terror at the memories unfolding around him. He didn't know what to do…

"THIS ISN'T REAL!" He shouted. Pounding a fist on the ground as he shook. "NONE OF THIS IS!"

Suddenly, he was grabbed by a new figure, looking up, Mad Dawg's eyes widened as a broken and falling apart Omnic grabbed pulled him up and began shaking him.

"Mad Dawg!" It exclaimed in a distorted voice, that sounded slightly feminine. "Mad Dawg!"

"What…" Mad Dawg muttered.

"Mad Dawg! You there?"

Suddenly snapping back to reality, Mad Dawg looked around, his nerves frazzled, seeing he was still outside the temple, but Pharah was shaking him.

"Wake up!" She exclaimed.

"Alright! Alright!" He exclaimed, taking. A few deep breaths and looking around. "What happened?!"

"You just sort of blacked out there. We couldn't get your attention. Are you alright?" The Helix Security commander explained, seeming concerned. Mad Dawg nodded.

"Yeah, just… freaked out a little is all." He admitted, and Pharah nodded in understanding.

"Kid, you okay?" Don Kim asked, walking up to the two.

"Yeah… I'll live." He nodded.

"C'mon. Morrison wanted you two to come back. Apparently, the Brit found something."

Making their way back Pharah noticed quite clearly that Mad Dawg's eyes were darting around, he was rubbing his arm as if something was off.

"Are you alright Kace?" She finally asked.

"Yeah…" He mumbled.

"No. You're not." She said stopping him. "If you don't want to talk about it with me, that's fine. But try and talk to Mercy."

"It's reminding me of when I was a kid." Mad Dawg blurted out. Pharah frowned, knowing what Mad Dawg was getting at, and put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay." She said calmly. "We'll get over this."

Mad Dawg nodded and kept walking, when they returned, the heroes were looking at a slightly burnt bandana. There were some confused murmurs, but when McCree saw it, his eyes narrowed and he seemed to grow agitated.

"Damn it… He growled. "Deadlock…"

"Deadlock?" Mad Dawg asked. "That old gang you were in?"

"Yeah." He nodded.

"You think they were behind this?" Tracer asked.

"But why?" Reinhardt mused.

"They're solely motivated by money, that's all they've ever been about." McCree explained. "Perhaps they were paid to do this, or somehow a member just _happened_ to be here when this all went down…" McCree rolled his eyes at the last remark.

"Right now, it appears that two things need to be done." Winston spoke up. "For starters, we need any information on the 'Deadlock Gang' we can get. Jesse, do you know where they're located?"

"Yeah." He nodded.

"Alright. That's good, we may need to send a team there to try and talk with them."

"That's a terrible idea." McCree flatly cut Winston off. "We get within one hundred feet of them and they blast us to shreds. Most likely only Dawg would survive a direct encounter like that."

"Hm. That does make sense." Winston muttered, clearly feeling at a loss for what they should do. "We also need to make a statement, people will start asking questions soon." He cast a glance around seeing a few news trucks were already arriving.

"I have an idea." Don Kim suddenly spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "I have never worked with these… Dreadlocks."

"It's 'Deadlock' old man." McCree corrected him.

"You shut up." Don Kim suddenly snapped, not turning to look at McCree, surprising everyone and making Mad Dawg stifle a laugh. "But if they are working with the Shimadas, perhaps I could get a meeting with their leader."

"You really think that you could just walk up to their base and demand to see their leader?" Zarya asked, slightly baffled at the old man's plan. "What makes you think they'd agree?"

"Six-hundred professional assassins, ready to slaughter them at a motions notice." He stated.

The entire atmosphere felt like it dropped several degrees. The heroes turned in shock, disbelief and some in anger to Don Kim, whose face was unreadable, he seemed as calm as if he was resting in his apartment.

"You have a personal army of that size?" Mei finally asked, taking a step back in fear.

"Pfft! No." Don Kim scoffed, rolling his eyes. "But they don't know that. All they know is that I'm in charge of one of the largest crime syndicates in the world. Well, not as much a 'Crime Syndicate' as 'Soda Company' but, look; do any of you have any better plans?"

"We could offer them McCree." Lúcio shrugged. "Pretty sure they'd be interested in getting him back."

"Whoa there. Whose side are you on?" McCree asked questioningly.

"Just sayin'." The Musician defended himself.

"Perhaps the easiest solution would be the most direct." Hanzo spoke up. "If McCree knows where they are located, then Genji and I could infiltrate the base and find anything useful, like a letter, or a hard drive and escape unseen."

"Actually, yeah. That's not a half-bad idea." Mad Dawg nodded in agreement. "If something happened or we got spotted on the way there, if I was with you, you could claim I was an apprentice or something you were training."

"I don't like it, but it's better than nothing." Solider: 76 finally admitted. "But you need more than you four to go."

"I'll go." Pharah immediately volunteered. "I could provide arial surveillance for them."

"If we are to do this, I will go as well." Ana stated. "If they get hurt, they need someone to help them."

"I'll go as well." Don Kim concluded, making a few heroes turn to him in confusion.

"Why?" Hana asked.

"Because if the Shimadas _are_ truly behind this attack, then any innocent blood spilt tonight is on my hands. My clan did this, I have to make it right."

76 looked to Ana and Winston, both of whom nodded before turning back to the group.

"Alright, if anything begins to go wrong, pull out. We don't need more conflict than we already have." He ordered.

"That's what she said." Don Kim whispered over to Mad Dawg.

"You got it boss." Mad Dawg nodded, trying desperately not to laugh.

Meanwhile, a man knelt quietly in front of a painting, several candles lit the room, giving a sweet aroma of cherry. The man breathed slowly in and out, in a deep state of meditation. He was suddenly pulled form his thoughts as he sensed someone approaching and simply sighed, waiting until he heard a knock on the door.

"Enter." He said.

The door slid open and a woman entered and bowed respectively.

"What happened?" The man asked.

"It went exactly as planned." The woman stated. "But… There was a slight complication."

"What?"

"Agents of Overwatch were present, and our sources believe that we may have seen Hanzo amongst them…"

The man's eyes widened and he stood up. He took a few deep breaths then turned around, clenching both his fists.

"Can we confirm this?"

"Not yet, but we are still looking." The woman admitted, slightly frightened.

"Then keep me informed my _ai_ I shall prepare for the second part of the plan."

The ride towards Route 66 was very silent. No one aside from Ana and Don Kim spoke, in fact, the two were talking rather causally, and they seemed to be talking about… whatever. Once they landed, they began making their way past a diner and down a road.

"So…" Mad Dawg began. "You, uh… anything you wanna tell me about these Deadlock Guys?"

McCree shot him a look, then sighed.

"It's a lot like you and your past kid. I don't like it." He began. "I did some bad things because I believed there was no other way I could live…" He looked forward for a moment, then looked back to Mad Dawg. "Dawg, promise me something."

"Yeah, what is it?" Mad Dawg asked, curious.

"Whatever you see or hear if we end up in there, you know I'm not that person anymore."

"McCree, you don't need to tell _me_ about understanding the fact that people change. You were one of the few people who gave me a chance when everything seemed to be pointing to me being some sort of undercover Talon Agent. I'm not gonna judge you for what you've done."

McCree smiled down at Mad Dawg.

"Thanks, Kace."

"At least not to your face."

"You're an asshole."

"I know. Also, I've been meaning to ask, what's up with you being an Italian Waiter? Genji told me to ask you at some point, he said it was a funny story."

McCree stopped walking, turned around with a solemn expression on his face and walked back to Genji, pulling his gun out and putting it to the Cyborg's chin.

"After we're done here, your ass is mine." He stated matter-of-factly.

"You started him on the jokes about me and Angela. Now we're even." Genji retorted.

McCree didn't say anything but walked ahead to where Mad Dawg was looking around a run-down gas station.

"It's just up ahead." McCree began. "We should head upwards into the mountain to try and scope out the-" He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a clanging sound and his eyes went huge as he saw a red tube with a lit fuse roll into view.

"Get down!" McCree shouted as the dynamite went off. McCree and Mad Dawg were thrown forward while Genji pulled Ana out of the blast radius, hiding behind a rock formation and getting his blades ready. Pharah turned, using her wings to try and shield the incoming debris from hitting Hanzo and Don Kim, pushing them into a mine and loading her rocket launcher. Before any of the agents could fire, bullets began raining down, and McCree and Mad Dawg took off running, swerving back and forth to avoid being torn to shreds. The other agents were currently pinned in their locations, but whether or not they had been seen remained to be figured out.

"MCCREE! WHAT'S HAPPENEING!?" Pharah shouted over the comm. link.

"Deadlock Gang!" McCree shouted back. "Stay where you are! Don't get seen!"

"But-"

"Trust me! We have a plan!" McCree cut Pharah off before she could say another word. After a few more intense moments, the bullets stopped. Mad Dawg slowly looked out from where he was hiding and saw the shell casings littering the road, and no sight of Jesse.

"Jesse?" He called nervously. McCree finally came out of hiding and Mad Dawg approached him, seeming scared out of his wits. Hearing a rifle cock, he looked behind him to see several men and Omnics wearing black and gold bandanas with rifles pointed at them.

"Who the hell are you?" one of the Omnics asked.

"Just… just passing through…" Mad Dawg lied.

"Then why are you with him?" Another man asked, pointing to McCree.

"I…uh…" Mad Dawg tried to think of an answer that wouldn't end in bloodshed. "Look, can you put the gun down? I'm about three seconds from pissing myself and…" Mad Dawg said but stopped talking and sighed. "Damn it, not again…"

"Oh, geez kid… how much asparagus did you eat?" McCree groaned, faking gaging and making a few of the Deadlock Gang members back up not wanting to smell… well, you get the idea. McCree took the opportunity and grabbed one of their rifle and punched the man in the face with his robotic fist. He went for his peacekeeper but was stopped when the biggest Omnic Mad Dawg had ever seen landed in front of him, he seemed to wear a vest with fur on it and had a bolar hat on his head.

"Hey B.O.B." McCree muttered awkwardly. His plan immediately going out the window and down in flames.

The huge Omnic punched him in response, knocking him out cold.

Mad Dawg's eyes darted to McCree then to where he saw the heroes preparing to attack. Mad Dawg mouthed 'No!' frantically and they slowly seemed to back off.

"Are we really going to let this happen?!" Hanzo hissed.

"We were looking for the leader of the Deadlock Gang. I think this is Mad Dawg's plan to meet them…" Pharah muttered.

"It's a dumbass plan." Don Kim remarked.

"Indeed."

Several of the gang members seemed to shove Mad Dawg forward, B.O.B. carrying McCree as the large steel door opened and they entered the Deadlock Base. Genji and Hanzo seemed to flash each other hand signs before oddly enough, playing rock-paper-scissors. Hanzo beat Genji with paper over rock and then jumped off of one of the rock formations and onto the gas station roof, running across it, he jumped and dashed mid-air somehow, landing on the large door and scaling it.

"What did he say?" Pharah asked.

"He said he was going to make sure the two were okay." Don Kim translated. "He also wanted to know if your mother is single or not."

The two with him snapped their heads back, Pharah seeming genuinely angry, and Genji… it was hard to tell with his face mask.

"I'll take that as a no?"

" _Okay… time to think of a plan."_ Mad Dawg mused as he walked. _"Maybe I can get the leader drunk… and they him and I play cards or something and I trick him into giving up the information. Or I could challenge him to a one-on-one fight… Hm… I guess that depends on how tough he is…"_

McCree groaned as he woke up, seeing Mad Dawg wearing his hat.

"I want that back…" He muttered.

"If we survive, sure." Mad Dawg nodded.

"Can you get me a smoke?" The cowboy asked.

"Now?!" Mad Dawg hissed, bewildered.

"Yes." McCree simply replied. Mad Dawg shrugged and took a cigar out form his bag and lit it, putting it in McCree's mouth.

"Thank you kindly." He said, smoking the cigar despite being upside-down.

"Keep quiet!" One of the men ordered. "The boss wants to see these two."

"Aw, crap…" McCree muttered. His face whitening somewhat.

"Yeah, Jesse? Who's this boss? How bad is he?" Mad Dawg asked.

"I said keep quiet!"

"Not a 'He' Dawg." McCree whispered.

"Like… not a 'He' physically or-"

"Well, well, well." A female voice that seemed sweet like honey yet cruel like math homework came from in front of them. "Jesse McCree. Been awhile, hasn't it?"

Mad Dawg looked out from behind B.O.B. and saw a woman with a black overcoat and snow-white hair pouring a drink before setting it down and noticing him. Hanzo perched himself on a rafter and balanced himself, not wanting to reveal himself just yet.

"Aw, you have a little sidekick! How cute." She cooed cruelly, smiling to Mad Dawg.

McCree was dumped onto the ground and Mad Dawg looked down at him.

"Ow." McCree grumbled, taking another drag off his cigar.

"Uh. Hi?" Mad Dawg said, a bit awkwardly. "You uh… You the Deadlock Gang leader's wife or something? Or sister?"

The woman raised a brow as she walked over to Mad Dawg.

"Have we met?" She finally asked. "You look familiar…"

"N..not that I remember." Mad Dawg stammered out, feigning fear. "I'm pretty sure I'd remember."

"Because I'm so beautiful?" The woman said teasingly.

"Oh, c'mon As-" McCree began.

"Yeah. Actually." Mad Dawg nodded, embarrassed, his face turning red. The woman laughed before shaking her head and lifting his head up.

"So, Jesse, who's the little guy?" Ashe smirked, looking down at Mad Dawg, who seemed unnaturally frightened.

"Uh… J? Who's she?" Mad Dawg stammered nervously, looking to McCree.

"Aww, don't be scared little guy, I'm not gonna hurt ya!" Ashe cooed with a grin, cupping his cheek as he looked her in her red eyes. "You're far too cute for that." She kissed his forehead and Mad Dawg aggressively blushed.

"Leave him alone Ashe!" McCree demanded, only to be hit by one of the Deadlock gang members, knocking him to the ground. Mad Dawg lurched forward and Ashe grabbed him with her gun, holding each side and keeping him in place. McCree was confused, what the hell was Mad Dawg doing?!

"Please… don't hurt him…" Mad Dawg managed to finally say. "Don't hurt my brother…"

This caused Ashe, McCree and all the members of the Deadlock Gang to freeze in shock, looking from McCree to Mad Dawg then back to McCree. Hanzo felt his jaw hit the ground from where he was hiding. What was Mad Dawg doing?!

"Whoa, hold up a second." Ashe said in disbelief, letting Mad Dawg go and turning him to face her. "You're Jesse's brother?"

"Yes." Mad Dawg whimpered.

"Sure, you are." She replied flatly. "You look nothing like him! And Jesse never mentioned no 'little brother' in all the time I knew him."

"Ashe… he's my half-brother." McCree finally admitted, playing into the ruse. "Jackson got around if you get what I'm saying. I only found out about him a few months ago. Jax, this is Ashe. She and I started the Deadlock Gang a while ago, she's an old…" He trailed off, unsure of what to say.

"Girlfriend?" Mad Dawg finished McCree's sentence, making Ashe laugh out loud at the remark.

"Oh, he wishes honey!" She laughed at McCree's shocked and slightly offended face. "We thought about it, but he never wanted to take that step." She seemed to look Mad Dawg up and down before continuing. "So, you're Jax? Named after your old man?"

"Don't mention that bastard…" Mad Dawg scowled, making Ashe's eyebrows raise in surprise. "Mom named me after him hoping it'd get him to stay. After I started to walk, he decided he'd done his part and walked right out the door and never looked back. We never heard from him again, hell, I didn't even know his _name_ until I met Jesse, mom never spoke of it. I had no hope of ever meeting him or having any sort of relationship with him. But I do hope that the crows are still picking the last remains of skin off of his rotting corpse somewhere out in the middle of nowhere."

Ashe was silent, both slightly shocked by Mad Dawg's sudden mood shift and the story he wove. She looked from Jesse back to 'Jax' in through. Their eyes seemed similar, but that was about it. However, he did seem to have a similar facial structure to him. Maybe they weren't lying…

"So, that's it?" McCree finally asked, sounding hurt. "He did to you what he did to me?" Despite still being on his knees with Bob's guns trained at him, McCree managed to move slightly so he was facing Mad Dawg. "Jax… why didn't you tell me?"

"Because… because…" Mad Dawg stammered, tears forming in his eyes as he tried to think of a reason. "The only thing I remember form him, was one sentence. 'He's not my kid, he's not strong enough to be a McCree'. And that, well, that stuck with me. In the end, I guess… I guess I thought I had to be stronger than that. To be more like you… I'm sorry Jesse…" He finished lowering his head sadly, tears now silently running down his face.

"Aw… it's okay hon." Ashe said, suddenly hugging Mad Dawg tenderly, rubbing his back. "It's okay, you're gonna be okay."

Most of the members of the Deadlock Gang were surprised by this, all looking to one another as if trying to think of an explanation as to why their leader was suddenly hugging a teenager. Mad Dawg shot McCree a look that said 'I can't believe she's buying this!' and 'Did you seriously date her?!' and 'Why'd you stop dating her?! She's hot!' all at once. McCree managed to give him a slight frown that said 'Keep. Acting.' Finally, Ashe let go and turned back to Jesse.

"So, how'd you two meet?"

"Me and a few of my friends were at a bar, we uh… Had a bit more to drink than we should've and called an lift. The kid was our driver, we were all so smashed we started talking about personal things… and then he started talking about them too. We crashed his car."

"Really? What the hell is wrong with you McCree?" Ashe scolded him.

"Hey, it was the liquor, not me." McCree defended himself. "Anyhow, we ended up running on foot to try and get away from the cops, turns out the kid didn't have a licence and was trying to make some money. As we ran we ended up making it back to his place and my friends all bailed. He let me stay the night and the next morning… I found a picture of Jackson on his shelf."

"You then immediately asked if I was dating him…" Mad Dawg muttered, making Ashe laugh.

"I was hungover!" McCree retorted.

"Yeah, yeah…" Mad Dawg rolled his eyes. Ashe seemed to be inspecting him before looking back to the members of the Deadlock Gang.

"Why'd you have a picture of the man who ruined your life?" She asked quizzically.

"Mama put it up…" Mad Dawg mumbled. "And when… when…" He trailed off, looking down at the ground.

"When what honey? You can tell me." Ashe prodded, lifting his chin up so Mad Dawg looked at her.

"She… she kept it because she believed he actually loved her. That one day he'd come back. She always talked about the fact that the day he came back is the day she'd win the lottery… Then she took off as well. So, I guess she won."

Ashe seemed moved, genuinely saddened for Mad Dawg. In all honesty, Hanzo found himself trying not to laugh at the scene unfolding below. He was _definitely_ going to write a book about this! It would be a best seller! Hell, he figured it would make more than the Shimada Crime enterprise ever did. Finally, she pointed to a few of the members of the Deadlock gang, and they backed away, slightly confused.

"You can go, but the little guy is staying here." Ashe stated, pushing Mad Dawg into a chair.

"No. He's not." McCree scowled, seeming more aggressive than Mad Dawg had seen him before.

"Sorry Jesse, but you're not in any place to give orders." Ashe smirked. "Besides, the kid needs someone with half a brain to train him, you'd probably get him hooked on burbon and cigars within the first week." She looked behind her and her face changed to disbelief as she saw Mad Dawg chugging the bottle of alcohol. He paused and looked around, then swallowed.

"What?" he finally asked.

"Get him out of here." Ashe ordered, as B.O.B. began to drag McCree off. "C'mon honey, let's get you some new clothes."

Pulling Mad Dawg away, McCree saw Mad Dawg shoot him a look that said _I got this._

" _Oh, we are so screwed…"_ McCree thought.

Hanzo silently exited and rushed back to the others, they seemed relieved but nervous at the same time to see him alone, Pharah seemed to be looking ag something as she held a device in her hand.

"What happened?" Ana immediately demanded.

"The Deadlock Gang got them, they tried to talk their way out of it, but the leader decided to keep Mad Dawg as some sort of guest-prisoner."

"We can't tell Mercy about this." Genji stated, fear clear in his tone. Pharah turned around, holding a communicator in her hand.

"What?" She finally said, her face draining slightly, as stuttered, horrified breathing of Mercy could be heard on the other end of the line. Finally, after a few moments of silence, Don Kim spoke;

"Oh, we are so _fucked_."


	44. Well, Now This Is A Thing

"HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!?" Mercy screamed for the fifth or sixth time.

To say that those who went to Route 66 weren't looking forward to trying to explain to the medic what had happened. Thankfully, she understood that Mad Dawg may have done this in an attempt to get inside to get information, and wasn't currently in danger, but regardless, she was still angered that this had happened.

"Look, Mad Dawg has a plan." McCree managed to get out.

"Which is?!" Mercy demanded.

McCree went silent, thinking it over, then finally shrugged.

"Okay, so maybe he _dosen't_ have a plan. That we know of. Currently."

Mercy out of anger, tried to slap McCree, but gave a slight cry of pain when her hand hit Don's wooden staff, the old man's reactions being lightning fast.

"Calm yourself Ms. Ziegler." He said in a calm tone, not turning to look at her as he seemed to be deep in meditation.

"No!" Angela shouted. "He's essentially trapped in a time bomb at this point! What happens if one of the Deadlock members hurts him!?"

"Mercy, he's been shot and stabbed more times than any of us combined." Hanzo muttered, but quickly went silent when he saw Mercy's angered face, looking back to his note book where he was writing down notes for his upcoming book.

"That's not what I mean. What if that… _thing_ comes out?" Mercy re-worded her concern, and to an extent, she had a valid point.

"If that happens, then we probably won't have to worry about the Deadlock Gang anymore." Don Kim shrugged, taking a drink. Mercy was practically fuming at this point as she stomped off.

"I haven't seen Angela this angry… ever." Emily said, looking over to Mei. "What happened?"

"How much do you know about Mad Dawg?" The scientist replied.

"A little, I know he was 'made' by Talon." Emily muttered, still feeling very uneasy about that fact.

"Well, not exactly." Mei replied, turning on her seat to look at Emily. "Originally, he was meant to be a pharmaceutical cure, an organism whose cells could be used to treat several illnesses. Something happened and his cells growth accelerated so fast it formed a body."

"So why did Moira make him into a monster?" Emily asked, her tone a bit harsher than Mei expected.

"Well, that's why Mercy cares so much." Mei replied honestly. "She, Moira and another doctor named Jax made him to be a cure, but Mercy had issues with what Moira was doing, after being told the project had died, she left… and Moira was paid by Talon to make a weapon, and that's how Mad Dawg came to be. Mercy only found out a few months ago he was the project that had supposedly died, and had been alive and living a less than ideal life."

Emily's face fell somewhat. Her opinion on Mad Dawg wasn't what it used to be, but she at least understood why Mercy was so upset. In a sense, her child was in danger…

"So, Mad Dawg's got taken by the Deadlock Gang, we have no way of communicating with him, and he appears to have been taken in by Jesse's old girlfriend." Pharah listed off what had happened. "Well, this could've ended worse."

Mercy's cry of 'HOW?!' could be heard all throughout the ship.

"Well, both he and Jesse are _alive_ for one thing." Pharah reasoned. "Also, Ashe appears to think Mad Dawg is just McCree's little brother, not an agent of Overwatch."

"You've been spending too much time with Mad Dawg." Ana stated matter-of-factly. "You're starting to think like him."

"That may be true, but it dosen't change anything." Pharah sighed.

"So, we're down an agent and no closer to finding out who's behind the bombings. Good going team." Lúcio muttered, clearly not too happy at the lack of progress being made.

"And what the hell have you been doing?!" Roadhog suddenly snapped, shocking a few of the heroes. "Playing your damn music while the rest of us were actually trying to save people!?"

"Save people?! You were trying to save as much food as possible fatass!" The musician retorted, on edge from the attack and not in a mood to be accused of anything. Junkrat looked up from where he was fiddling with something, his face draining of colour.

"Uh-oh." Was all he said. "You don' did it now mate."

Before Lúcio could react, Roadhog's huge fist sent him into the wall. The behemoth was quickly upon him and both hands were throttling the small Brazilian. Immediately Reinhardt and Winston were trying to pull the Junker off, but Roadhog was stronger and heavier than Reinhardt, and even their combined strength didn't seem to be enough. Everyone was shouting at Roadhog, but he didn't seem to hear or wasn't listening. Ana grabbed her sleep dart and aimed it, but before she could fire, a loud _Bang!_ Rang out through the ship, a bullet hitting the wall inches from Roadhog and Lúcio, and more importantly, a fuel line. Letting go of the Dj, everyone slowly turned to look at Don Kim, who was holding McCree's smoking gun.

"Both of you. Stand. _DOWN._ " The old man ordered. Silence filled the ship as everyone stared in shock at what had just happened before Hana spoke up. Or rather, shouted.

"Are you INSANE!?" She screamed. "You nearly hit the fuel line! You would've killed us all!"

"True." Don Kim finally nodded, still holding the gun. "I didn't think this through." Dropping the gun, he walked towards the two. "Listen, I don't know if you two are best friends or not, but if an army's greatest enemy is its own soldiers, then this battle is already lost."

Genji, having remained silent until this point, looked back to the group and spoke up.

"If there's one agent I trust to be able to pull off an undercover job like this, it would be Mad Dawg." He remarked. "He has a… unique way of surviving, and we all know that this isn't the first time he's made some risky choices in order to find information critical to saving people."

"As much as I don't want to say this, I have to give Deadlock credit where it's due." McCree sighed. "Ashe isn't like the Junker Queen, she wouldn't torture and kill an innocent man like the Junkers did to Dr. Baja. So long as Mad Dawg can keep the act up, they'll treat him like one of their own."

"That _may_ be true, but we can't forget about that _thing_ he can become." Reinhardt agreed. "If that beast comes out, especially in a group of outlaws, people could, and probably will, be hurt."

Mercy was thinking everything over, trying to think of a plan, something, she was so deep in thought she hadn't noticed Tracer come up behind her.

"You all right love?" Tracer asked, concerned for the medic.

"I'll be fine Lena…" Mercy sighed, shaking her head. "I believe Mad Dawg will be alright, I just don't want him getting hurt again… We already lost him once, and know that I know what he is, I can't let that happen again."

"I know love, we're gonna get him out of there. He'll be okay."

"If no one has a plan, then I believe I do." Don Kim spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "But if it's going to work, we need to go back to Lijiang."

"For what exactly?" Ana asked, not too sure any sort of plan Don Kim had was a good one.

"There are several hidden stashes the Shimadas' set up all across the country my dear." Don Kim replied. "We used them to hide supplies and money in case we ever fell onto hard times. There's a few of them that only I know of, and I need something from one of them." Casting a glance out the window, he muttered: "It's time for the dragons to rise…"

 _Meanwhile…_

"All good kid?" Ashe asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Y..yes Ma'am…" Mad Dawg stuttered, making Ashe sigh.

"Kid… Okay, first of all, drop the 'Ma'am', it's either 'Ashe' or 'Boss'. Got it?" She muttered, clearly having been down this path before.

"Yes, boss." Mad Dawg nodded, sliding on a jacket and stretching his arms to make sure it fit.

"Secondly, you don't need to be so frightened. If I was gonna hurt you, I would've by now."

"Haven't heard that before…" Mad Dawg sighed as he pushed up his sleeves slightly. The black and golden jacket looked nice, he still liked Ray's jean jacket more, but he couldn't deny that this looked cool.

"Are you okay? McCree didn't… get you hurt, did he?" Ashe asked, it was hard to tell if the concern in her eyes was real or not, but Mad Dawg didn't care all that much. He had to get to the bottom of whoever attacked Lijiang.

"No. I'm… uh… I think Jesse said I was socially retarded or whatever it was."

"Socially awkward." Ashe replied, a slight scowl noticeable. "You're not retarded. At least, I don't think you are."

"Meh, whatever. I'll leave that to the readers."

Ashe gave Mad Dawg a puzzled look but shook her head.

"So, listen closely because I'm only going to say this once." She began, leading him down a hallway. "Deadlock isn't a gang. We're family."

Mad Dawg nodded, signaling he was listening.

"We live together, we work together, we fight together, and if we have to, we die for one another. But don't worry kid, we're not gonna throw you into the deep end right away."

"Okay." Mad Dawg quietly replied.

"A few rules." Ashe continued. "First, unless you're bringing me news, my office is off limits. Second, we don't need to be tearing each other apart, like I said, we're a family and we need to work together in order to be successful. If you've got an issue with another member and you can't work it out, bring it to me. That leads into rule three; the way to solve a problem is words, then fists, in that order. Afterwards, if you still can't come to an agreement, then B.O.B. or I."

"Got it." Mad Dawg replied.

"And finally." She stopped walking and turned to face him, getting close to his face as her eyes narrowed. "We die before we squeal. Understand?"

"Yes boss." Mad Dawg answered, a bit more confidence in his tone.

"Good. Then you're gonna be just fine." Ashe smiled as she kept walking. "So, if your Jesse's brother, can you shoot at all?"

"Well yes, but actually no." Mad Dawg answered. "I can fire a gun, but long-range accuracy is something I'm not too good at. McCree showed me a few things, but his peacekeeper always felt off-balance."

"Alright, what kinda weapon do you use?"

"I'm a good shot with a crossbow. I ended up cleaning and refurbishing an old double-barrel shottie that has some good kick to it, it's in my bag actually."

"Alright, so you prefer to be a bit of a balanced fighter?" Ashe said, taking in what the new recruit had said.

"Yeah, I'm good at hand-to-hand, so you don't need to worry about carrying me through a fight. On top of that, I can throw knives pretty accurately. Tomahawks too."

"Where did you or Jesse get a tomahawk?" Ashe laughed. "With his mentality, he'd probably drop it on his own damn foot."

"I made it." Mad Dawg simply replied.

Ashe stopped, surprised and turned around to look at Mad Dawg.

"You… made it?" She finally said.

"Yup." Mad Dawg nodded. "Before I met Jesse I loved watching this show called Fire Forged, and I took a class on blacksmithing and started freelancing as a blade smith and weapons forger."

"Impressive." The outlaw remarked. "What can you do?"

"I can make crude weapons on short notice, give me time and I can make something half-way decent. Knives, chakras, even some types of swords. They're not masterpieces, but I'm still learning I guess… But I found a real knack for restoration. I even got hired by… oh wait. I'm not allowed to talk about that."

Ashe chuckled as she shook her head.

"Kid, I'm not gonna turn you over to the cops because you cleaned a mobster's gun. You can tell me."

Mad Dawg fidgeted for a moment, then spoke up.

"Uh… do you know the Shimadas?"

While it was very minor, Mad Dawg noticed Ashe's body seem to react, as if she was surprised someone else knew of them.

" _Interesting…"_ He mused.

"The crime syndicate? Yeah, I've heard of them."

"I was tasked to repair an old katana, apparently it was a symbol of strength or something… I dunno. They made it kinda clear the less people knew about it, the better."

Ashe didn't say anything, she just looked at Mad Dawg with perplexed amusement.

"Okay, so you're a blacksmith and a bit of a fighter. Anything else you can do Jax?"

"I can cook." Mad Dawg answered.

"Oh, thank you!" Ashe exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "No one here can cook to save their lives! Please tell me you can make more than grilled cheese!"

"McCree really liked my chicken parmesan, I can also make a chilli so hot it breaks McCree's focus."

"Mmm… I haven't had that in ages…" Ashe seemed to be thinking about times gone by. "Also, how hot of chili are we talking?"

"I sold it out of a food truck, and I had to have people sign a release saying they wouldn't sue me and I wouldn't be held accountable for any damages. Before you ask, several people ended up in the hospital. One of them was because he swallowed a spoon, don't ask how that happened, I don't remember."

"Great! You're starting by making dinner tonight." Ashe suddenly cut in, pushing Mad dawg into a grimy kitchen. "If you need anything, ask the boys. They'll get it for you."

Mad Dawg looked around. The kitchen reminded him a lot of his old train yard home… Namely because there were so many dirty dishes that it seemed like a convention for wild animals had happened here and all the attendees had terrible manners.

Kind of like Mad Dawg.

" _Piss up your own ass and die."_

Without warning, a large metal pot fell off of a shelf and smacked Mad Dawg on the head.

"OW!" He yelled, annoyed, he grumbled for a minute then called: "Hey Ashe? Can I have my bag? I gotta clean this junk and I wanna listen to some music."

After a few moments of silence, one of the Deadlock members walked in and set Mad Dawg's backpack on the ground.

"You need anything?" He asked. "Carl's making a grocery run in a few minutes."

"Yeah, I'll need these things." Mad Dawg nodded, handing him a list. "As for the last one, you need to sign a waiver for it, just let him know that so he isn't confused."

The member looked at Mad Dawg, then the list, he looked up at Mad Dawg, a bit surprised, then shrugged.

"Alright." He said before leaving.

Mad Dawg picked up his tape player and sighed, he hoped McCree was okay, he believed Ashe would let him go like she said, but he was more worried about how the others were going to react. Roughly half an hour passed and the kitchen was clean now. Mad Dawg sighed as he sat down in a chair and rested his head on the table. He needed a plan, and a drink. Not necessarily in that order. It was dawning on him now that since the bombing, he and the others had been going non-stop, and he hadn't slept on the flight over here due to paranoia and a need to try and figure out _anything._

" _I can figure it out la…"_ Mad Dawg began, but suddenly fell asleep, his lack of energy catching up with him as he began breathing calmly. Ashe walked by and looked over at Mad Dawg with a slight smirk, returning to the inventory counting to make sure things were where they would be.

Waking up a bout forty minutes later, Mad Dawg shook his head as he groaned, seeing a bag with food sitting on the counter. Checking what had been brought, Mad dawg grinned when he saw the small bottle at the bottom of the bag.

"Good, your awake." Ashe's voice came from outside as she leaned against the doorframe. "The boys are getting hungry, they're wondering what they're gonna have."

"How spicy do they like their chilli?" Mad Dawg asked with a mischievous grin, Ashe's eyebrows raised in amusement and she smirked herself.

"Hot as you can make it." She ordered.

"Oh, _hell_ yeah." Mad Dawg laughed to himself. Picking up a large pot, Mad Dawg turned on the stove and picked up a tube of ground beef. "Word of advice boss, bring a camera to dinner. You're gonna wanna record their faces."

"I'll remember that." She nodded as she headed back to her office. Mad Dawg looked through his bag, frowning when he saw they took his phone (granted that didn't surprise him too much) but grabbed his journal and flipped to the back of it where he had a few recipes written down.

 **Warning, if you are going to attempt to make this recipe, please wear thick gloves while handling both the hot sauce and the peppers, direct contact with skin can lead to irritation and if you touch your eyes (or other parts of your body) it will be painful for a very long time. Also, under NO circumstances should you directly ingest either the hot sauce or the peppers, actual permanent damage to your throat and body can and most likely will occur. For a more tolerable chili, use Frank's Read Hot Sauce, and Chilli or Jalapeño peppers rather than the Carolina Reapers.**

Mad Dawg's Fire Tank Chili

What you need:

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef

1 onion, chopped

1 small green bell pepper, chopped (Or red, dosen't matter.)

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 (16-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

2 (14-1/2-ounce) cans tomatoes paste

4 to 7 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoon black pepper

1 Carolina Reaper Pepper, minced (Or Jalapeño, this is preferred and far less painful to eat)

1-3 Drops of Mad Dog 357 Hot Sauce OR half of a drop (NO MORE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE) of Satan's Tears Chili Extract Hot Sauce.

(You can add tomatoes if you want, but I think they're disgusting.)

How To Prepare:

Step One - Cook beef, onion, garlic and bell peppers in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring until beef crumbles and is no longer pink; then drain, set this to the side and wash the black beans.

Step Two – Pour Tomato paste into pot and set on HIGH. Allow paste to begin to bubble, stir as it does, during this, pour in hot sauce (If wanted) and add salt, pepper, minced Carolina Reapers, chili powder, and beans. Continue stirring.

Step Three – Add the meaty mixture you have from step one and keep stirring. Change temperature from HIGH to MEDIUM if your friends aren't ready to eat and out a lid on the chili, but check it every few minutes.

Step Four – Serve, and watch your friends try to stomach the Reapers!

Step Five – Run. They're probably mad and probably have some sort of weapon they're chasing you with. Try to put as much distance between you and them as possible. Either via a tree, or a car.

Mad Dawg dumped the meat into the pot and took the vegetables over to the counter and began chopping them, eyeing the bottle of Satan's Tears hot sauce and debating _how_ much he was going to put into this batch of chili.

" _Well. She DID say she wanted it to be as hot as could be…"_ Mad Dawg grinned wickedly.

While Mad Dawg worked, just outside of the Deadlock Town, a man looked through a pair of binoculars through the window at the Deadlock base. He watched several members carrying boxes with ammo in them through the large hall and stacking them on top of one another.

"No…" He muttered, turning his binoculars to another window where Ashe was sitting at a large desk writing something down, as if she was planning something out.

"No…" He muttered again, shifting his gaze one last time, he saw a teenager working away in a kitchen stirring a large pot that was steaming.

"There you are Beta…" He muttered.

Putting his binoculars back into a bag, the man slid down the nearby clifside and jumped, his boots giving him a boost as he landed on the path along the large wall and he slunk towards the Deadlock headquarters, he slowly pulled out a handgun and checked the magazine, an orange liquid in a vial was loaded into a dart. The man closed the magazine and slipped into an unlocked door.

Across the world, Don Kim, Hanzo, Genji, Solider 76, Winston, Tracer, Emily, Junkrat, Ana and Hana all entered a small home in the country side. The heroes looked around in confusion, this was the hidden stronghold Don Kim had spoken of? The house seemed very basic. There were a few seats in the middle of a room, a few paintings on the walls, but nothing too fancy about it. In fact, it seemed… bland almost.

"So, uh… I don't mean to sound pushy here mate… but whatever you've got… I recommend you get it an'fast." Junkrat finally said what everyone was thinking.

Don Kim didn't say anything in response, he simply walked forward towards the centre of the room off to the side and groaned as he sat down on one of the seats, looking down at something in front of him. The heroes looked to one another confused as to what they were supposed to do.

"Mr. Shimada? Do you need help?" Hana finally piped up. Once again, there was no response.

The heroes dispersed somewhat, trying to locate what Don Kim had been talking about, something that could help them. However, despite looking in all of what they assumed would be hidden spots, there was nothing. It was just an ordinary house.

"Oi, I don't mean to sound mean here… but uh… does the old geezer have dementia or somethin'?" Junkrat whispered to Hanzo, and the archer gave him a death glare. "I'm just sayin' is all."

"Mr. Kim, with all due respect, time is something we may not have an abundance of right now." Mercy began in a kind yet stern tone.

"Please Ms. Ziegler, sit." Don Kim finally replied, motioning to another one of the seats. Mercy gave a him a quizzical look then sighed quietly and sat down, looking at him using his staff to move off shapes around. "You seem stressed, why is that?"

Mercy gave him a downright baffled look before she could finally answer.

"Well… aside from a bombing going off in a heavily populated city, we aren't any closer to figuring out who or why this has happened." She reasoned, sensing there was more to this.

"But we are, aren't we?" Don Kim calmly replied, not looking up at her. "We believe that the Deadlock Gang, and as much as I hate to admit to it, my family, may be behind it."

"Well yes, but we can't do anything based on assumptions." Mercy frowned.

"Ah, but you're wrong." The old man shook his head. "Without assumptions, we would have nothing. How did we discover what was safe to eat or not thousands of years ago? We assumed everything was, and then learned the hard way not everything was. How did we learn the secrets of light construction? Well, first we had to question if that was even possible, and thankfully, someone _assumed_ it was."

"I see your point, but I don't see how it helps." Mercy finally replied, feeling more lost than earlier. Kim had a decent point, but with the assumptions that a gang based in Texas and a crime family long thought to be dismantled were behind a bombing, what could be done?

"Most often we don't see how things work until they're completed, that's how we learn they work." Don Kim said. "I feel like only you can answer this Ms. Ziegler, why are you so afraid of Mad Dawg gathering information in the Deadlock Base?"

"Mad Dawg is many things." Mercy replied. "A fighter, a survivor, someone who cares deeply about those he considers his friends and family. But he also has a habit of acting aggressively without reason. He's done things to try and solve an issue which has only led to death in the past."

"I believe I may have been partially responsible for that." Don Kim agreed. "When he came to me seeking any knowledge about his past… I didn't realize how deep it went, and that he was flying in the face of you and your organization."

"He wasn't… He just… was going about it in the wrong ways." Mercy defended Dawg's actions. "Wanting to understand where one came from isn't inherently wrong, but the game he found himself in, and the choices he had to make, were."

"I believe that to many, wanting to find out where you came form isn't an issue, but in Mad Dawg's case, it would be." The old man shrugged in response. "After all, his past could be the key to saving the world… or destroying it."

"Depending on who you ask, yes." Mercy nodded.

"Is that why you're so nervous of him being left alone in the Deadlock base? After what happened with the Junkers, you don't want any more blood on your hands?"

Mercy seemed flustered, she was at a loss for words, and Solider was about to speak up when Don Kim sighed.

"Forgive me, that was out of line." The old man said. "While both you and I have little to nothing in common, the one thing that binds us both is that we care for Mad Dawg. To me, he is a savior. A kid who saved my life and was a friend when I needed it most. Someone who I could try and lead down a better path, maybe in some fallacious attempt at redemption."

"From what Mad Dawg said about you, he didn't think you were a bad person." Mercy said, surprised at Don Kim's sobering words.

"I may not be now, but I have done many things I wish I could take back." He replied, continuing to re-arrange the small pieces into something. "Just look at my grandsons…" He shook his head before adding: "And you, you care for him with instincts you may not have ever considered, or even realize you are using. In many ways, you see yourself as his mother, or some sort of surrogate parental figure. Not because of who he is, but because you had a hand in creating him."

"Yes. In a way, I do feel responsible for him." Mercy nodded. "But Mad Dawg is also his own person, and he only recently began to find his footing again. I only wish to help him in any way I can… But I fear that I'm trying too hard to protect and help him, and I'm pushing him away."

Don Kim looked Mercy in the eyes, and the medic saw there wasn't any insanity or alcohol in them. He was completely serious and calm about everything he had been saying. She felt something in her hand, and she saw he had placed a tangram piece.

"If you believe in him the way you believe in yourself and your team. You'll find the pieces fall into place." He finally said, standing up with his staff. Mercy looked down, a bit confused, then saw a piece form the middle of the puzzle, forming a dragon, and she inserted it.

All throughout the house, a deep rumbling could be heard, Don Kim looked at a wall as a door seemed to open outwards revealing a darkened stair case which became illuminated by a series of lights which lit up in pairs, one after the other, leading down them. The heroes came into the room shocked at what had happened, and Don Kim finally pointed to Tracer, Solider 76, Emily, and Hanzo.

"You four may follow. The rest, wait." He said, before starting down the stairs. The four looked to one another, then slowly followed after him, Emily holding onto Tracer's hand nervously.

Outside, a woman hung upside-down form a tree, looking through a scope into the house.

"Sensei. They're here." She said.

"Good." The man said. "Send them in."

"Affirmative, what about Don Kim?"

"He is an old man. He has lived long past his time, get rid of him. I shall move onto phase two."

"Yes sensei." The woman replied before pushing a button on her belt. A series of red eyes illuminated from the nearby bushes, and a series of slow growls could be heard.

 **A.N. And… Scene. Come back soon, this is gonna get GOOD!**


	45. Questions Raised, Questions Answered

As the heroes walked down the narrow stairway, Don Kim led the way, his cane tapping on the stones as the descended deeper and deeper underground. Don Kim's usual jubilant energy seemed replaced with a clouded and foreboding sense of dread. He suddenly paused, then turned around, as if realizing something.

"We're about to be attacked." He stated.

"What?" Soldier asked, his eyes narrowing. "What do you mean by-"

Morrison suddenly felt a knife slash his shoulder, and he cried out in pain.

"MOVE!" Don Kim ordered, suddenly grabbing Tracer and spinning around, putting her further down the stairs, then doing the same to Emily. "Get to the safe at the bottom! The combination is 23-19-69, there's enough food and air to last four weeks! Now GO!"

Before either of the women could process what was happening, a darkened figure jumped up onto the ceiling, it stared at them and hissed, then launched itself at Morrison once again. This time, the old fighter managed to bash it in the face with the butt of his gun, but when he flipped it around, the being scurried up the narrow wall again, this time looking to Emily. Emitting a deafening screech, it crawled towards her, but was stunned by Tracer's pistols.

"Run luv!" Tracer exclaimed, Emily stood frozen for a few moments, then took of further down the stairs. Tracer saw fire-orange blood drip out from the many wounds, and it seemed like whatever this thing was it was severely injured. But without warning, the wounds closed themselves, and the attacker looked at Tracer, then hissed again, showing its needle-like teeth.

"Lena!" Jack shouted, but stopped when he saw a group of eight more shadowy figures coming towards him. "Damn it…" He scowled, opening fire. The shadows seemed to wail in shock and pain as the scattered onto the walls and ceiling. Tracer found herself being swarmed by these things, and she blinked to the top of the stairs, feeling a slight bit of relief until she screamed in shock:

"Emily!"

Emily had reached the large door to the safe room, thankfully, there were lights so she could see what she was doing. She had no idea what these things were or what to do, she prayed Lena was alright, that was all that mattered to her right now… She saw the key pad and began entering the code, but paused right before she hit the last nine as she heard a long hiss. Slowly turning around, she saw one of the shadows approaching her. Only now in the light, she could see what it was. It appeared to be human, almost, but it's skin was gray with countless cuts and scars all over it. It's hands and feet seemed to be unnaturally sized, and this thing's fingers seemed like claws. Its head jerked back and forth sporadically as it approached her, gnashing its teeth with drool running down its mouth. Emily whimpered and tried to push back. She could smell its rotten breath as it stood on its hind legs and looked down at her. Emily closed her eyes, knowing this was the end.

"Hagane o taberu, rokudenashi!"

Emily's eyes shot open when she heard a sickening _squelch_ and the creature screamed in pain. She saw a katana had entered it's back and came out its chest, splattering orange blood around it. Don Kim ripped the sword out of the attacker's back and in one swift move, decapitated the creature. He paused for a few moments, breathing heavily, before looking to Emily.

"Are you alright?" He asked, concern clear in his voice.

"Y..yes." Emily stammered, still shaken up by what she had seen.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, and I'm sorry you were attacked." Don Kim said with a surprising amount of sincerity. "I do not know what my son wants, but I will not let this attack go unpunished. Now please, stay behind me."

Emily was about to ask what he meant, but stopped when she saw several more of the humanoid beings crawled into the small clearing. Don Kim slip his foot back, taking a fighting stance. One of the grayish beings yelled and rushed forward. Kim remained still, until in a flash he was on the other side of the creature. It gurgled slightly and looked down, a clean gut across it's abdomen. With a sickening squelch, it fell into two parts onto the ground. Emily felt her blood freeze when the top half of the being began moving once again, slowly crawling towards her. Kim turned in shock and he quickly drove the sword into the creature's head. It squired for a few moments, then seemed to shrivel up and die.

"Okay, this is just getting weird." Don Kim remarked. He looked up and saw one the others figure looking back at him. "Aw, hell… here we go again…"

Up above, the other agents of Overwatch were fighting off the gray-skinned beings who had silently appeared and attacked. Some of them had guns and some had knives. What was proving to be an issue though, was their inability to stay dead. Thankfully, the agents had gotten their weapons from the dropship and were now engaging with them.

"What are these things?!" Junkrat shouted as he tossed a steel trap out, one of the attackers getting stuck in it.

"I don't know!" Genji shouted back, throwing his stars into its chest. The creature however, ripped them out and the wounds quickly healed.

"They can heal!" Junkrat yelled, panic rising in his voice. "What are we gonna do?!"

Reinhardt yelled and smashed one of the attacker's heads against a wall with his hammer. Its skull exploded like a watermelon, coating everyone nearby in orange blood. This time however, it didn't move, and as it shrivelled up into dust, it was clear it was dead.

"Destroy their heads!" The crusader ordered, making a large fist and slamming another one's head.

Roadhog meanwhile, snagged one of them with his hook, yanking it back and grabbed it with one of his colossal hands. He heard another one and in a flash grabbed the one that was currently attacking Ana, forcing her into a corner, hoisting it high into the air.

"Thank you." The medic sighed in relief.

"No problem." The giant replied, then said very sternly: "Cover your eyes."

Everyone who happened to see what Roadhog did next knew they probably were going to have to see a therapist in the near future, everyone except Junkrat. Who shoved his grenade launcher into one's mouth and laughing like he usually did, blew it's head off. Thankfully, there weren't many left at this point, and the few remaining ones suddenly snapped up, as if hearing an invisible voice, and all tore off out through the door and windows, before any of the heroes could react, they had disappeared.

"Did we win?" Hana finally asked.

"I don't know…" 76 growled. "But Kim's got a lot of explaining to do…"

Down below, the four remaining attackers all rushed forward, Kim sheathed his sword and began using his cane as a bo staff. Spinning about with athletic agility that seemed impossible for someone of his age, he managed to step in-between the attackers, his wood and steel cane smacking into heads and jaws. His age was a hindrance though, as he wasn't able to react fast enough and received a claw across the back. Disoriented by the pain, he was knocked to the ground by another attacked, and they all swarmed him. Kim tried everything he could to escape, but the attackers kept him down. Looking behind him, he could see one of them approaching Emily, the fear obvious in her eyes. Suddenly, he felt something spark inside him, a feeling he thought he had long since lost. There was a renewed sense of determination as he managed to grab his cane and tried to unsheathe his sword, driving into the creature, only for the entire cane to go through its skull. It wasn't what he planned, but it was enough to get whatever this thing was off of him. Grabbing the sword hilt, he drew his blade and quickly dispatched the other attackers, suddenly hearing a very audible _CRACK!_

"Oh God! My back!" He yelled in pain, feeling his cartilage snap aggressively. In his pain, he accidently threw his sword, which went straight into the last attacker's abdomen, pinning it to the wall next to Emily. After a few deep breaths, he groaned as he pushed himself back upright and turned to Emily.

"Are you hurt?" He asked with clear concern.

"N..no." She stammered.

"Alright, that's good." He nodded, now looking over to the creature pinned against the wall. As he approached it, he could hear footsteps of some of the heroes coming down the stairs, followed by Tracer's blinking and rushing over to see if her girlfriend was alright. Kim was completely entranced by the attacker. It seemed human in almost every way, but it's skin was a sickly gray, and it had markings on its arms, as If some sort of langauge was burned onto its flesh. Not to mention its hands hand feet were misshapen, and its fingers and toes seemed more like knives than body parts.

"This is what attacked us?" Lúcio asked, looking at the thing on the wall, which seemed to snarl at them as they approached.

"Yes."

Genji seemed to be trying to get a better look at the markings, and eventually stabbed his shoto into the creature's hand, extending its arm out.

"Okay, that was kind of excessive." The musician winced.

"He's in his 'I'm a badass ninja mode' let him have this." Don Kim whispered. "Also, remind me to see a chiropractor. I am in _so_ much pain…"

Genji seemed to be studying the lines, they seemed to be trying to spell something, but it was impossible to read, almost as if it wasn't all there…

" _Not all there! Of course!"_ He suddenly realized.

"I think I understand what these markings are." He declared, turning back to the group. "It's unfinished Japanese characters."

"Whaddya mean by that mate?" Junkrat asked, confused.

"Messages are seared onto these things' bodies, but certain lines are missing to make it impossible to read the whole message."

"If that's true, then this is a real problem." Mercy spoke up. "We've seen that killing these things causes them to turn to dust, and it we try and finish this message, it could easily kill it."

"But this message may also be the only real clue we have to figuring out who's behind the attack in Lijiang." Pharah replied. "Is there some way that we can remove that message without-"

With an audible sound of cutting flesh _,_ everyone turned in shock to see the humanoids arm swinging left and right, still held in place by Genji's sword, while the figure screamed in pain as it's wound was seared shut but a blowtorch. Don Kim wiped the orange blood off of his sword and put it back into his cane, handing Junkrat his torch back and now seeing the horrified looks on most of the heroes' faces.

"What?" He asked defensively. "It's not dead."

At this point, there were a few sighs, but everyone had half-expected Don Kim to do something like that, so they remained silent as Genji quickly cut the remaining letters into the arm.

"Well?" Someone finally asked, seeing the cyborg having been unnaturally silent. Genji turned around, his eyes clearly wide behind his mask.

"We gotta get Mad Dawg back." He finally said. "NOW."

Back in Deadlock gorge, Ashe was finishing up writing something as she walked down the hall towards the mess hall. She was interested to see how Jax's chili would be, and how the others would react to him. As she approached the doors, she could hear banging from inside the hall. She groaned knowing, they probably decided to haze the kid, and were currently beating the crap out of him. Grumbling as she opened the doors, she could _not_ believe what she saw.

Several of the more aggressive Deadlock members and Jax were banging mugs on the table in rhythm while others drank, and everyone was singing.

"Now everybody's died! So 'till our tears have dried, we'll drink and drink and drink and drink and then we'll drink some more!" They all sang together. "We'll dance and sing and fight until the early morning light then we'll throw up, pass out and then go drinking once again!"

Ashe didn't know how to react to this, and certainly didn't know what to do when Jax suddenly jumped up on a table, mug of beer in hand and continued singing.

"Rico Marley fought with Xander near the cliffs of Omnic Creek, he took out his shanker and stabbed him in the spleen. Crazy Uncle Jesse thought he was a leprechaun, but he was just a leper, now his arms and legs are gone…"

Everyone in the room was doubled over in laughter at this point as Mad Dawg continued.

"When Jace McCormack broke his neck, it was a cryin' shame… He wasn't really Deadlock but he was with the S.O.A. Ol' Akande crossed the street, and got flattened by a truck, but he was with Talon so no one gave a f-"

"Hey!" Everyone cheered.

As they repeated the chorus, Mad Dawg jumped off the table and went to where the large pot was and began serving bowls of chili.

"Hey boss." He said with a sheepish smile. "We uh… we were waiting for you."

"You can cook _and_ sing? I'm impressed." Ashe smirked, messing with Mad Dawg's hair. "I thought they were gonna tear you apart. How'd you get them all together like this?"

"Booze." Mad Dawg simply replied making Ashe laugh.

"You're too cute for your own good, you know, that, right?" She teased rubbing Mad Dawg's cheeks like a mother would a baby. On the outside, Mad Dawg replied with a small smile, on the inside, it felt like a fireworks show was going off in his brain.

 **Don't get used to this.**

 _What? Why?_

 **This isn't that type of fic, we're NOT going there.**

 _Man, you really suck._

After a few minutes, everyone was looking at their bowls, Mad Dawg had warned them about how hot the chili was, and everyone seemed to be waiting for someone else to take the first bite. Finally, one of the members, shrugged, not believing it could be that hot, and tired some. He tasted it and swallowed, seeming fine.

"That wasn't too bad kid. I was expecting more." He snarked. Upon hearing that, a few more members tired the chili, commenting on its strong taste, but tolerable heat.

"Just wait…" Mad Dawg smirked.

After a few moments, the smirk on the Deadlock Member's face faded away, and his eyes began to widen.

"Oh wow, that's got some kick." He admitted, a bit surprised. He hadn't noticed, but his face was slowly turning red as he began breathing heavily. Grabbing a glass of water, he downed it quickly, trying to extinguish the heat which kept rising, his face getting redder and redder.

"What in tarnation was in that?!" He shrieked, desperately trying to cool himself down. But the chili wasn't merciful, the heat was getting unbearable, and the two members who sat next to him could feel it from his skin and his breath. Currently, about half the members present stared in shock, while the other half laughed uncontrollably. Ashe and Dawg were in the latter camp as they were laughing at the misfortune of the members of the gang. One of the poor saps who ate the chili now glared angrily over to Mad Dawg, knowing he was the one who made the chili.

"Okay smartass! YOU eat it!" He demanded, anger and pain clear in his voice. Mad Dawg smirked and picked up the bowl, before drinking the entire think in one go. Everyone present stared in shock as Mad Dawg downed the bowl and wiped the last remaining bit off of his mouth.

"Anything else you want to see me do?" He asked with a triumphant smirk. Then after a few moments, he remembered something. While he'd be able to heal form, any burns the chili caused, it was still going to burn. "Aw, crap."

Now everyone laughed as Mad Dawg began coughing and wheezing as the heat overtook him, his face going almost comically red. Ashe smirked over at the kid, she had to admit, she was surprised how far he went with the chili, and she liked it, taking another spoonful, she felt the heat, but kept eating.

"How… are… you… fine…!?" Mad Dawg wheezed, the heat unbearable at this point.

"You may be Jesse's baby brother, but you aren't full westerner." Ashe smirked. "I've been eatin' chili hotter than this since I was a little girl."

"Good… for… you…" Mad Dawg groaned as he grabbed a bottle of water, chugging it. Ashe's smile disappeared in an instant when she saw what he was doing.

"Jax!" She exclaimed. "That's vodka!"

"Oh f-" Mad Dawg began but stopped when he just began screaming cartoonishly as his mouth was burned form the inside out. By now, most of the Deadlock members who hadn't eaten the chili were laughing at Dawg's misfortune.

About three hours later, Mad Dawg's mouth finally calmed down, and his healing factor went to work, he was stable now, and decided he needed to hurry up and find any information he could. He didn't mean to stay here this long, and hoped that Mercy was alright, and that Don Kim hadn't pissed everyone off yet. He wandered a hallway, looking at the doors. Not noticing several members of the gang with burnt tongues coming up form behind.

Night had fallen in the Deadlock Compound, Ashe walked into the kitchen to get some water before she went to sleep, opening a cabinet, a hand passed her a glass.

"Thanks." She muttered, somewhat tired.

"No problem." A voice replied.

Filling the glass, her eyes suddenly widened in shock as she realized there was someone in the cabinet. Opening the door again, she saw Mad Dawg was lying in the cabinets along the wall.

"Hey." He said. "Uh. Anything important you wanna say? Cause uh… I'm trying to sleep."

"What are you doing in here?" Ashe finally asked, bewildered and at a loss for words.

"It turns out that the Deadlock Gang were kinda mad about the chili heat, so they stuffed me in here as revenge." Mad Dawg remarked.

"…do you want me to get some butter? Or do you need B.O.B. to come pull you out?"

"Honestly, I think I'm good for the night." Mad Dawg replied.

"Okay kid, be honest with me. What did Jesse do to you?" Ashe suddenly said seriously.

"What?"

"What happened in your life that makes this somehow completely normal to you?" Ashe said matter-of-factly. "I can't think of anything that would make this-"

"Look, I have a weird life okay? Jesse didn't make me get used to this, and neither did my mama. It's just… I lived in a really small apartment with her for a while, and I had to sleep in a small room some nights while she was entertaining."

"She was a socialite?"

"She was a hooker. I think."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

The pair remained silent, Ashe spun the water in her glass slightly, feeling awkward as to what she should say next. Finally, she shook her head and sighed.

"Well, if you need help getting out, just ask B.O.B., he'll pull you out." She decided to say, deciding to leave well enough alone.

"Alright." Mad Dawg nodded, turning back over, getting ready to go to sleep.

"You need anything?" The cowgirl asked.

"Yeah, an empty bottle." Mad Dawg replied. "I uh… I don't wanna…"

"I got it kid, I don't need the details." Ashe grimaced as she handed him and empty whiskey bottle.

"G'night." Mad Dawg said.

"Good night I guess." Ashe muttered, closing the pantry door and leaving the kitchen, shaking her head as she thought about what had just happened. "Weird kid…"

About four hours later, the pantry door slowly opened, Mad Dawg listened for a few minutes to make sure there was no one around, the began squirming to escape the pantry. This hadn't been part of his plan that he was still figuring out at this very moment, but it did prove to be helpful. Not sleeping in a room full of Deadlock Gang Members who may wake up at a moment's notice or see that a bed was empty made things easier for the mutant. Managing to pull himself out somewhat, his legs found themselves stuck, and his torso now hanging out over the sink.

" _Hm. Maybe butter wasn't such a bad idea."_ Mad Dawg thought.

After a few minutes of awkward squirming, Mad dawg managed to slink his way out of the pantry, as he stood up, he noticed a glass wabble and fall out of the pantry. With huge eyes, Mad Dawg caught the glass on his foot, then it rolled off onto the floor. Mad Dawg sighed in relief, noting that there was some noise, but not enough to wake anyone up.

In the bunker room, a Deadlock member shot up in bed, looking around for the direction the noise came from. He breathed heavily for a minute, then sighed and lay back down assuming he was just hearing things.

"It's all good Pete, all good…" He mumbled, before dropping back to sleep.

Mad Dawg poked his head out form the kitchen doorway, and began to sneak down the hallway, keeping low to the ground and listening for any sounds. As he made his way through the base, the sounds of snoring could be heard. But that was about it. Mad Dawg began thinking about what his next steps were; get his gear, get any information he could, then get out. Ashe wasn't as horrible as he was told, but he also knew whoever attacked Lijiang Square was still out there. Thankfully, Mad Dawg had an odd habit of counting doors, to most it seemed weird, but to him, it was a way of mentally mapping out where he was.

" _Fourth…Fifth…Sixth! Here we are!"_ He thought, slowly opening the large steel door and crawling in. Catching his breath, Mad Dawg looked for his backpack, finding it on top of a crate. He opened it and dug through it, to his annoyance, his phone was gone and so were his weapon tools. But his journal was still there.

" _Wait a sec…"_ He paused, thinking intently. _"If Ashe or any Deadlock guy saw this…"_

In the dim light, he flipped through the journal, his notes and sketches were there, but there were notes that weren't his, he felt his blood run cold. Thankfully, he had filled his first journal with notes about joining Overwatch and the truth about his past. This was just clues about the bombing and some sketches, with a few pages on random things. There was a black fine cursive on several pages, mostly noting how the artist was pretty good, but on the last page, that's where things got frightening to Mad Dawg. His eyes scanned his most recent entry, looking at the black annotations:

 _Well, holy crap. Someone freakin' bombed Lijiang Square! Who TF would do that?! Talon?! The Junkers!? Holy crap there was destruction all around! Thankfully from what I've gathered, there were injuries, but no casualties… Thank God. And just when things couldn't get worse, Virus showed his literal dead ass again!_ _ **Virus? Like the musician who died? What the hell does this kid know about him? Also, what the hell happened in Lijiang?**_

 _I need to talk to Emily again, only issue is she hates my guts after the whole 'Kings Row' crap… Not that I blame her. Still, the meds I tired aren't doing anything, I don't want these nightmares anymore…_ _ **Face them, that's the best way to work through trauma.**_

 _According to Jesse, this may be some new extremist group, or some other group. My money is on Talon. After all the crap they've done to me and the others, only issue is this seems to… blunt._ _ **First of all, 'After all they've done to me'? What exactly do you mean by that? Secondly, 'Others'?**_

 _It's weird, I feel… helpless in all this. Still, I've been down that path before, and I promised myself I'd never go back there again._ _ **Exactly! Face the future and fight for yourself!**_

Mad Dawg looked to the next page, noticing it was already written on, he frowned as he read the entry.

 _ **Hey kiddo, you've got some interesting thoughts, you know that, right? Not to mention some real artistic talent. I hope you didn't mind me reading through this, but you seemed to shy about your past. After reading this, I can safely say this: You intrigue me. You're clearly not telling the whole truth, and that's fine, everyone's got skeletons in their closets they don't wanna address. But sweetie, if I find out that you're really some sort of undercover spy or something, there won't be mercy. Still, I don't wanna hurt you. You're funny in an adorkable kinda way.**_

 _ **XOXO**_

 _ **Ashe**_

" _Oh boy. I gotta get outta here…"_ Was all Mad Dawg could think.

Realizing now that time was very much against him, he scoured the room for his weapons. He knew he didn't have time to go looking for them, but he was also in the 'Junk Room' as Ashe had explained it, the room where crap was tossed to be dealt with later. He frowned when he couldn't find a gun, but did feel some sense of completion when he found a crossbow.

"Awesome…" He muttered.

Sticking the weapon into his bag, he quickly and quietly left the room, and continued his way towards the office. The compound was surprisingly quiet, and Mad Dawg's slinking footsteps echoed quietly off of the long hallways. Mad Dawg was surprised how… alone he felt. He liked it if he was being honest, it reminded him of his days back at the train yard, making hotdogs and playing his harmonica under the stars. Rounding a corner, Mad Dawg saw the door he was heading for, Ashe's office, and quickly scampered quietly down the hall. Coming to a stop, he heard footsteps from behind him and his hair stood on end.

" _The guards… Crap…"_ He mentally cursed himself. Looking around for an escape he saw an old locked and jumped in, holding the door closed as the footsteps got closer. Only now did Mad Dawg hear a beeping along with the footsteps as if someone had a tracking device. Suddenly, the locker door was opened.

"Hey guys, you still mad about the Chili?" He chuckled weakly.

"The chili? Nah, I'm mad about something else _Beta_."

Mad dawg looked at the man standing before him. He was a tall, well-built dark-skinned man with a scope over his right eye. He seemed to have a poncho like McCree, but cut in half. In one hand, he held a small device that was beeping frequently, in the other hand, he had what Mad Dawg assumed was a grenade launcher.

"Wait. How do you know-"

Twip. Twip. Twip.

Mad Dawg looked down at his arm, seeing several darts in it, he looked back up at the man, who shrugged casually, as Mad Dawg began to black out.

"Oh… you… asshole…" He muttered as he fell forward and into the man's arms.

"Phrasing." Mad Dawg managed to get out, followed by a weak chuckle. "We look so gay…"

The man raised a brow before putting one of Dawg's arms around his shoulder-

" _Not helping disprove my previous remark."_

-And quietly made his way out of the Deadlock HQ, getting into a keep and driving to a small campsite a few miles away.

"Alright Beta. Time to see what Moira's up to." The man remarked, as he cuffed Mad Dawg to the jeep door.

 **A.N. All right, Baptiste is here. But you might be curious, what** _ **exactly**_ **is going on with Lijiang and the Shimadas? What about those gray creatures? Are the Deadlock Gang really involved? Will Lúcio ever find out Mad Dawg stole all of the bases' supply of Lúci-Oh's? Even the ones from his hidden stash? Well, the answers (and more) in the next few chapters.**


	46. A New Ally?

Groaning as he came to, Mad Dawg looked around confused. He pulled forward and felt his arms restrained, his vision was blurry, but as he came to, he saw he was restrained by some sort of laser-cuffs.

"No…Mr. Grey…" He muttered, still coming to. When his vision returned, he shook his head and looked around, he saw a small campsite set up, with a tent and a fire in a pit burning calmly. A few sparks shooting off of the crackling flames. He tried to pull himself free, but found his was chained to a jeep. Not just by his hands wither, but by his hands, feet, legs, and even his waist. He yanked on the cuffs by they seemed to pull him back, automatically tightening themselves around him, making him growl in protest. He knew he could turn into his beast-self and tear this jeep to shreds, but he didn't want to hurt anyone if he didn't have to.

" _Yes, I do! I wanna kill someone!"_

Pushing that thought from his mind-

" _Stop ignoring me you asshat!"_

-he heard footsteps approaching from behind the jeep, looking up, he saw the man form earlier standing over him.

"Evening Beta." He remarked.

"Who?" Mad Dawg lied.

"Don't give me that." The man frowned, sitting down across form him. "I know who you are, and I know what you are."

"I'm just some guy." Mad Dawg shook his head, trying to act like he had with Ashe. "My name's not Beta, It's Jax Tel-"

"You're one of Moira O'Deorain's experiments. Test subject Beta-576, codename: Dagda." The man cut him off matter-of-factly. "You were the only real success of the New Star Program. A being designed to be a living cure, turned into a deadly weapon."

Mad Dawg remained silent, thankfully he had been able to keep his composure well enough, even though he was screaming like a girl on the inside. Was this an agent of Talon? If so, how did he know all those details? Most of the agents of Talon knew Mad Dawg existed, but from what he could tell, Moira was desperately trying to keep his origins under wraps. Both to save face, and because… well, she didn't much care.

"That's an interesting story." Mad Dawg plainly remarked. "But again, my name is Jax-"

Without warning, the man pulled a small handgun out and shot Mad Dawg in the arm. The mutant teen yelled in pain and anger as he felt the bullet go through his muscles.

"Okay, wow. Thanks asshole!" He shouted. "Anything else you wanna do while I'm chained up in a very unsettling way?! Or do you wanna film it?!"

The man watched as Mad Dawg's arm quickly closed the wounds, and now saw both of Mad Dawg's hands were extending middle fingers.

"Sorry kid, had to be sure it was really you." He shrugged.

"For the last damn time… I'm not-" Mad Dawg tried to lie once again, knowing he probably wasn't going to convince this new guy he wasn't who he was, but he needed to stall for time.

"Then how'd you heal?" The man asked with a raised brow. "From what the file said, Beta was designed to survive wounds and sicknesses, that's what your mama Moira made you capable of, like mother like son, one monster to anot-"

"THAT BITCH ISN'T MY MOM!" Mad Dawg now shouted, fury filling his body as he lurched forward, ripping the jeep door clean off the hinges and pulling the truck up somewhat with it. The man seemed shocked by the sudden shift and jumped back, as the jeep crashed back down to the ground. "Do NOT compare me to her!"

Now the man saw not fury in the kid's eyes, but tears were beginning to form.

"I'm nothing like her…" Mad Dawg practically whispered, pointing at his captor. "I don't _want_ to be like her… But no matter what I do, people keep getting hurt. I try to be a good guy, and it just brings more danger to everyone I care for… I don't wanna be a monster, but I don't know how to be a human."

At this point, the man was sitting in shocked silence, from everything he had seen, this project was designed to be a merciless killing machine, an unrelenting force of chaos and destruction that left nothing but death and horror in its wake. Was it possible… that this experiment, this monster… was more than he had believed? Could this weapon have the capacity to change?

"Kid, I-" He began, approaching the shaking Mad Dawg. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Neither did I." Mad Dawg mumbled.

"What?"

Before he could react, Mad Dawg headbutted the man, knocking him back onto the ground. The man grabbed his gun and fired, determined not to let this lead get away, while Mad Dawg used the jeep door as a shield as he ran for cover. Making the bullets bouncing off of the metal, but also waring it down. Before he could think of a plan, Mad Dawg found himself being dragged through the air as the man grabbed the jeep door and threw it, the chains pulling Mad Dawg with him. Landing near the fire, Mad Dawg kicked some embers at the attacker, who yelped in surprise when his sleeve caught on fire, while he was distracted trying to put the fire out, Mad Dawg rammed him with the dislodged door. Landing on top of the man, who was now trying to push the door (and Dawg) off of him, Mad Dawg tried to head-butt him again…

But forgot about the window.

"OW!" Mad Dawg yelled as he slammed his face into the glass, cracking it. The man toot eh opportunity to punch through the glass in knock Mad Dawg off of him. Sending him sprawling onto the ground.

"You don't fight too well for a Talon agent." The man remarked. "I thought you'd be tougher."

"I ain't no Talon agent!" Mad Dawg groaned. "And I can fight really well when I'm not stuck to a door!"

Upon hearing that, the man seemed to slow down, realization and surprise filling his face.

"Wait. You're NOT a Talon agent?" He asked, bewildered, then frowned. "No. You're lying."

"I *cough* I'm not!" Mad Dawg coughed up a small amount of blood before turning to the man. "I'm a member of Overwatch. If you don't believe me, look in my backpack, at the very bottom there's a false bottom."

Slowly opening the bag, the man felt around for a minute before finally finding the aforementioned false bottom. There wasn't a bomb or a gun like he had expected, but a picture. Pulling it out, his confusion and disbelief seemed to melt away as he locked at the picture. It was of Tracer, Mercy, Reinhardt, Junkrat (who was hanging from the ceiling), Winston, Symmetra and Mad Dawg in a rec room. He turned to face Mad Dawg, who looked up at him.

"You were right." He sighed. "I'm Beta-576, I'm the thing Moira made, but what I said is true, I don't want to be like her. I don't want to be a monster for evil."

The man went silent again, then sat down next to Mad Dawg, still looking at the picture, then looking over to Mad Dawg.

"I get it kid." He said after a few moments of silence. "I really do."

"Uh-huh." Mad Dawg snarked, rolling his eyes.

"No. Really." The man continued. "My name's Baptiste. I'm an ex-Talon agent."

Now it was Mad Dawg's turn to go silent, he looked at Baptiste with widened eyes, not sure of how to react to what he had been told. If this was true, Baptiste may become his best friend, but if he was lying, Mad Dawg was screwed.

"Before you ask, I joined Talon for survival, but I couldn't do what they asked me to do. I was willing to sacrifice a lot of my morals and ethics, but what they made me do… I couldn't man. I just couldn't."

After a bit of silence, Baptiste pressed a button, and the restraints on Mad Dawg deactivated. Rubbing his arms, Mad Dawg sighed in relief deciding to give Baptiste the benefit of the doubt and see where this went.

"Okay, so let's say I believe you, I believe you're an ex-Talon agent." Mad Dawg began. "A few things: One, how do you know so much about what I was supposed to be? Secondly, how long have you known about me? And C, why are you looking for me?"

"Well, you and I have a mutual friend." Baptiste explained, then when he saw the look of confusion on Mad Dawg's face, he added: "Sombra."

"W..what?" Mad Dawg stammered, his face paling somewhat.

"Oh yeah, Sombra and I go way back." Baptiste chuckled. "We were, and still are, good friends. I'm pretty sure part of why I've lasted this long was because she didn't screw me over and tell Talon where I was."

"Well that makes one of us." Mad Dawg grumbled.

"Look, I've been tracking you down ever since she told me about what happened in King's Row and-"

"Can she not keep her damn mouth shut?!" Mad Dawg yelled, throwing his arms up in the air in annoyance.

"She can, but not when she's being tortured." Baptiste snapped in response.

"What?"

"She didn't want to tell anyone what happened, but Talon literally _tortured_ it out of her." Baptiste said flatly, a bit of anger in his tone. "So, don't blame her for telling what happened, that whole thing was Virus' fault anyways."

Mad Dawg sighed, shaking his head, he was tired, this was a lot to take in.

"But as I was saying, I've been looking for you and the others." Baptiste continued with his explanation. "Si far, you're the first one I've met that didn't immediately jump to violence."

"Wait, wait, wait." Mad Dawg said, his head snapping up in shock. "Can you repeat that?"

"Uh, okay. I've been looking for you and the others." The medic repeated himself.

"O..others?" Mad Dawg sputtered, in shock at what he had heard. "Like, other Overwatch agents? Other Talon agents?"

"Do you not know about this?" Baptiste asked bewildered. "Kid, you were the 'only successful experiment', but that means you were the only one that came out _human._ "

Mad Dawg stared slack-jawed at Baptiste. He felt like a bomb had gone off in his face, he understood now how Overwatch felt when he revealed his past to them. Others? There were… more of him? How many?! And by others, did he mean failed experiments, or were there other walking, talking mutants like him?!

"I need you to explain everything to me. NOW." Mad Dawg demanded.

 _Meanwhile… On The Ship..._

"The markings I found on the creature's arm were Japanese symbols, they appear to have been added to these creatures after they were made, as they appear to have been tattooed on at a later date." Genji continued with his explanation, the one they had caught hissing violently in a makeshift cage in a corner. "However, the markings were incomplete, it was a code used by the Shimada crime family to send messages to one another without them being deciphered, as only a select few knew which lines actually meant which symbol."

"Well that's all well an'interestin. But what the bloody hell does it mean!?" Junkrat exclaimed for the back, still a little wound up after the attack.

 _Back In Deadlock Gorge…_

"You see kid, you were a late addition to their experiments." Baptiste explained. "For a while, Moira experimented on her own to create a living organism, as time went on, she had Jax and Mercy join in, making the process a bit easier."

"However, while Mad Dawg was the only certified 'success', they had multiple failed attempts." Genji continued.

"After Mercy left, and you escaped, Moira and Jax got a bit more… risky, so to put it." Baptiste said. "They knew it was possible, and they wanted to make another. There were twelve more tries, nicknamed 'The Talon Twelve'."

"Of these, eight of the subjects would survive, the others died." Genji continued. "If you're asking how I know this, they wrote all this is the tattoos, although I can't say why they did."

"Currently, I've managed to track down three of the remaining experiments, I even managed to kill one of them." Baptiste said, motioning to a large scar on his face. "But it wasn't easy…"

"However, the remaining subjects weren't human, they looked like… that." Genji said, pointing to the caged creature, who banged against the cage in a desperate attempt to break free.

"Except there were a hell of a lot more than eight at the house." Soldier 76 spoke up, not liking where this was going.

"See, while Moira and Talon made twelve more, someone has been making more of them." Baptiste concluded. "However, while they do possess your healing factor, they're far inferior to you. They may be physically stronger and faster, but they only respond to the orders of one of the remaining eight, and whoever controls them."

"So, you mean to tell me that Talon has been breeding demented clones of Mad Dawg to make an army?" Lúcio questioned, summing up what had been told to him by the cyber ninja. "Dude… that ain't good…"

"It ain't Talon that's making these new monsters though." Baptiste added. '

"It's our family, the Shimadas." Genji concluded.

 **A.N. I need to talk for a second.**

 **I'll be real, I'm not happy with how this story has turned out. You can see form chapter sixteen to chapter thirty-nine the drastic tonal shift the story took. What was supposed to be a somewhat darker arc with plenty of humor became increasingly darker and darker. It has everything to do with where I was mentally when I wrote that, and I took WAY too long to resolve the whole 'Leaving Overwatch' story line (twenty-three chapters out of now forty-six. Literally HALF the story was dedicated to that.) Also, I didn't have much of a plan for the 'Forrest Valley' Arc and it showed. In recent chapters I've finally been able to get back to the humor and tone I wanted, but the damage is done. I want to move on to others stories featuring Mad Dawg. I have an ending tentatively planned for this story, but if there's a sudden 'Oh hey, it's over.' I'm sorry, my goal for this story has been lost, heck, it was supposed to end like ten chapters ago. But if it DOES suddenly end, I PROMISE you, there WILL be a 'Overwatch: A Dawg's Tale 2' in order to properly end the story.**


	47. A Worse Ending Than Game Of Thrones!

Baptiste watched as Mad Dawg puked for the third or fourth time, in an odd twist, his vomit was orange and red, the medic found this interesting, and he didn't know why. Mad Dawg's eyes were filled with tears of pain as he felt his stomach empty itself once again. A million thoughts were racing through his mind; he couldn't focus, he couldn't speak, he couldn't breathe…

A wave suddenly washed over him as he felt a force similar to Mercy's healing staff revitalize his body, allowing him to take a few deep breaths and calm himself from the panic attack he was having.

"You okay kid?" Baptiste asked. "Y'know… aside from the obvious…"

"How the hell… do you THINK I am?!" Mad Dawg managed to snap, still breathing heavily. "After what… you just told me…"

"I thought you knew, I really did." Baptiste said, trying to defend himself the best he could. "I thought like, you all had a hive mind or something… or some sort of way of connecting together."

"We're not the freakin' Borg!" Mad Dawg shouted. "At least… I don't think we are…"

"Kid, you need to calm down." Baptiste said, pulling a canteen out from his bag. "Drink this, take a few deep breaths, then we'll talk."

Mad Dawg looked at the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste, then to the canteen, then to Baptiste.

"No." Mad Dawg said flatly. "I ain't taking drinks form people I don't know or am uncomfortable being drugged by."

"How many people are you comfortable being drugged by?" Baptiste asked, bewilderment clear in his voice.

"Well, there's Jesse, Santos, Winston, Reinhardt, Kim… Crap!" Mad Dawg suddenly exclaimed as he realized something. "Don Kim! The attack in Lijiang!"

"Hold up." Baptiste said. "Don Kim, as in 'Leader of the Shimada Crime Family' Don Kim?"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. "We're… kinda buddies."

"Not gonna even ask." Baptiste shook his head. "But you also said you were with Overwatch?"

"Yeah." Mad Dawg nodded. Baptiste seemed to be deep in thought for a moment, then addressed Mad Dawg.

"I need you to get in touch with them, if we're going to stop these… Husks, we'll need all the help we can get."

"I don't have a comm device…" Mad Dawg muttered, embarrassed at his hasty exit.

"I got you." Baptiste nodded, tossing him a spare one. As Mad Dawg reached out to catch it, a wormhole opened and Mad Dawg fall through it, leaving a speechless Baptiste.

 _Two Weeks Later…_

The heroes stood in silence around the empty casket that was lowered into the ground, tears on their faces and their hearts heavy. It was over, the fighting, the attacks, it was finally over. But… It came at a great cost… Written on the tombstone were two words:

Mad Dawg.

The En-

"WHAT THE F**K?!"

What?

"No! We're not just skipping to the ending! How shitty a ploy is that?!"

" **Dawg. I don't really want to do this, but this story is a mess, and I can't salvage it. We're gonna move on to the next one, trust me, I'll try and be better."**

"This… yeah. This was a mess." Mad Dawg sighed, before turning to face the reader. "Hey everyone! Thanks for reading… the few of you that still read this hot mess… Look, we can't salvage this story, it's too far gone, so we're gonna go on ahead with the later plans for this… And hope it's better. Speaking of better, I see the light at the end of the tunnel! And a van! Oh crap! I'm gonna land on-"

Thud!

With a resounding sound, Mad Dawg smacked into the hood of a van and flopped onto the road, blood spilling everywhere as he felt his skull cave inwards and his body get shredded.

"Lori! You hit someone!" Mad Dawg faintly heard a boy's voice exclaim in terror as the van screeched to a halt, then he could see a white-haired boy jump out and run towards him.

"Hey!? Stick with me! You're gonna be oka-"

"Screw… you… author…" Mad Dawg weakly muttered, then everything faded to black.

 **I'm sorry.**

 **If you really did enjoy this story, I'm sorry. I can't keep making myself write it. There's nowhere left to go but the overly drawn out ending. I wanna have fun with Mad Dawg again, so… look. I don't know what to say alright? I have nothing. NOTHING. Left in terms of drive to write this. The Talon one? Totally, but that's because I planned that. Again, I'm so sorry if you liked this, I gotta move on, but I promise, I'll come back to this, and explain what happened.**

 **Someday.**

 **SkorchNTorch, Out.**


	48. Just Kidding!

Mad Dawg breathed heavily and confused as he looked around, confused beyond words. He was standing in a small room, with a hammock hung in a corner, a pool table and tv taking up most of the space in one corner, and a slushy machine humming quietly in another corner. Mad Dawg's heart was racing a mile a minute, what had just happened?!

" **Oh, hey."** A voice suddenly said, making Mad Dawg whirl around and see…

Someone.

"Who the hell are you?" Mad Dawg demanded. "Why am I here? I need to help my friends, I-"

" **Dawg, calm down."** The newcomer said. **"Everything is gonna be a-ok, just hear me out."**

"…SkorchNTorch?" Mad Dawg finally said in disbelief.

" **Call me Skorch, but yeah."** Skorch nodded.

"What am I doing here?!" Mad Dawg shouted.

" **Well, you see kid, I'm about to do what's known as a 'Pro Gamer Move', so… things may get a bit… weird."** Skorch replied, waving his hand and suddenly, another Mad Dawg appeared next to Mad Dawg, albeit wearing different clothes.Mad Dawg stared in disbelief now at… well, himself.

" **Listen, Dawg."** Skorch continued. **"I love this story, I really do, but I'd like to work on some other stories with you as well, so I've come to a compromise, that you will go into the future and begin the next story, while you stay here and finish this one."**

"I have so many questions..." Was all Mad Dawg could say.

" **Yeah? Well tough."** Skorch replied.

"Hang on, if he's me, and he's going to the future, then dosen't that mean I survive this story?" Mad Dawg asked, suddenly realizing something.

" **Now I never said that, this is more of an 'In-case-something-happens-to-you-before-I'm-done-I-have-another-one-of-you' scenarios."**

"But the last chapter… You said you were done…" Mad Dawg #2 now spoke up. "All that was just a meta publicity stunt?! Or some weird ass 4th wall break?!"

" **Dawg, I'm an elemental being clothed in fire and wearing a sombrero who had lava dreadlocks, does any part of that scream trustworthy? Or that I have** _ **ANY**_ **idea what I'm doing before I start talking?"** Skorch replied nonchalantly. **"I mean, I adopted a Dragon Ball story only having seen about three episodes of Dragon Ball IN TOTAL. I'm really just kind of winging it right now."**

"Is that why that story took so long to update?" Mad Dawg #1 asked. "You were binging DBZ and Super to make sure you actually knew what you were talking about?"

" **Yes."** Skorch nodded. **"And isn't that what really matters?"**

"No." The two Dawgs said in unison.

" **Great!"** Skorch laughed. **"So, when this story is done, if the two of you are still alive, you'll become one again, and your memories will become one again!"** Another portal opened and Mad dawg #2 yelled as he fell through it, the portal to where Baptiste was standing, still frozen in time reappeared and Skorch quickly addressed Dawg one last time. **"Also, you're not gonna have any memories of this conversation and I can't help you for a bit, alsoThanosdidnothingwrongthejediareeviltheempireisledgitandMillenawontbedlcformk11stopaskingforherBYE!"** the entity yelled as Mad dawg was pulled back through the portal.


	49. Getting Your Life Back On Track (Sorta)

"Kid? Beta?"

Mad Dawg swayed back and forth, blinking but not saying a word. Baptiste bit his lip, unsure of what to do, which was something new for the medic. He didn't know if he should give Mad Dawg a boost or if he should slap him. Eventually, the Ex-Talon agent decided to do both, but in the opposite order. Just as Baptiste's hand came millimeters from Mad Dawg's face, Mad Dawg came back into conciseness.

Slap!

"Ow!" Mad Dawg growled. "Dude. What the hell?"

"Sorry, you blacked out, like completely." Baptiste apologized awkwardly. "Like… I thought you were broken or something… You good?"

Mad Dawg opened his mouth to respond, but couldn't remember what had just happened. Had he been talking to someone other than Baptiste? But… who? Aye, whatever, it probably wasn't that important. Not nearly as important as…

"Yeah, surprisingly, I'm not." Mad Dawg nodded, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm not sure why though. I mean, I probably should have expected there to be an army of clones of me, and of course I was gonna find this out while I was undercover in the Deadlock Gang trying to find out who bombed my friend's home in Japan, all while I'm still trying to get my life back on the rails after an asshole who I thought I had _killed_ suddenly decides to start showing up again, but hey. I GUESS I SHOULD BE USED TO THIS."

Baptiste simply took a step back and blinked a few times, finally he let out a simple, single.

"Huh."

Mad Dawg sighed before kicking a rock off, watching it bounce and roll towards the cliffside, eventually tumbling off and falling into the canyon below. Mad Dawg shook his head after a few moments, he needed to keep moving forward, him mentally breaking down wasn't gonna help anyone.

"So, Bap. Are you an agent of Overwatch?" Mad Dawg asked.

"No." The man replied, shaking his head. "I'm more of a vagabond hero. Overwatch dosen't always… agree with some of my methods."

"Same here." Mad Dawg remarked. "So, this might be an odd request, but I want you to come back with me, I think we're gonna need your help with finding these copies of me, and if we're gonna put a stop to this, we'll need all the help we can ge-"

Mad Dawg was cut off by the sound of guns cocking, all around the small campsite, members of the Deadlock Gang surrounded the two. The masked figures looked down their sights as Baptiste and Mad Dawg realized there were completely outnumbered, Baptiste's gun was too far away for him to grab and even if Dawg went into his Beast form, he knew he was still gonna get hurt, _bad._ Still, he hoped the Deadlock members hadn't found out the truth just yet…

"Jackie, you alright kid?" One of the members, Pete, spoke up first. Looking up from his shotgun and looking at the mutant.

"Yeah, I'm good." Mad Dawg nodded, relief washing over him on the inside as he realized that yeah, they didn't know the truth yet. Time to keep acting.

"Great, move out of the way so we can kill this guy." He replied, everyone aiming once again.

"Whoa, hold up." Mad Dawg said, suddenly moving in front of Baptiste. "He's not an enemy, he's a friend of mine."

"Ashe said to find whoever took you and, I quote, 'Give them more holes than swiss cheese and make them wear their insides on the outside'."

"Guys, we don't have to do this!" Mad Dawg protested again. He needed Baptiste alive, at least for now. "Can… Can I talk to the Boss at least before we kill him?"

The gang members all mumbled something to one another before all somewhat lowering their guns. Baptiste raised a brow as he wasn't sure what Mad Dawg was doing, but also knew right now that this kid was his best chance for survival. One of the members radioed Ashe and seemed to be having a one-sided conversation with her. Finally, he hung up and made a few quick gestures, and Dawg and Baptiste found themselves being shoved towards the trucks the Deadlock members came in.

"So, uh… You got a plan kid?" Baptiste whispered.

"Well yes, but actually no." Mad Dawg answered. "Just… give me a minute."

Just on the outskirts of Deadlock Gorge, a small dropship landed and several agents jumped out. Reinhart took up position in the front, his shield up and ready in case of an attack, McCree was acting as navigator, Genji was running across the cliffside, scouting ahead, Zarya was there for extra muscle, and Mercy was there to make sure everyone had medical support for what could potentially be a suicide mission. Meanwhile, the rest of the agents on the bigger dropship were trying to find where Don Kim had gone. The old man had disappeared, and wasn't on the ship…

"Hey boss? We found the kid!" A lanky Deadlock member called, and Ashe whirled around, her face showing anger, and Mad Dawg felt his spine chill. In a few strides Ashe closed the distance to the teen and she looked down at him, her blood red eyes boring into his orange ones. Ashe shook her head and tsked, like a mother discipling her child.

 _Speaking of discipling…_

No.

 _You're so mean!_

"What am I going to do with you?" Ashe sighed resting her hand on his cheek before giving him a quick kiss on the forehead. "Well, your safe, and that's good enough." Turning to Baptiste, her eyes narrowed into a dark fury before speaking again, several guns cocking: "And as for you-"

"Ashe! Wait!" Mad Dawg suddenly exclaimed getting the woman's attention. "He's not what you think he is! He didn't kidnap me!"

Ashe turned with a mixture of confusion and disbelief clear on her face as she looked at Mad Dawg. Her face seemed to read _just how stupid do you think I am?_ And Mad Dawg realized he was slowly entering a hole that was going to be hard to get out of.

 _THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!_

"Mm hmm?" She mused, raising an eyebrow at the mutant teen before looking to Baptiste. "Then who is he?"

"He's an old friend, his name is Virgil Hawkins. He texted me he was nearby and I went to meet up with him. I'm sorry I took off but you were asleep…" Mad Dawg replied, his eyes darting around nervously. Thankfully, Baptiste's face was unreadable, as he simply looked in silence at Ashe and the others, his face showing barely any emotion. This was not how he expected things to be going… then again, he assumed 'Mad Dawg' would've been dead by now. B.O.B. was looking at Mad Dawg, then Baptiste, then to Ashe for instructions.

Ashe… didn't believe Mad Dawg's story for a second.

"Well, if that's true, then why did we see him shooting you and then dragging your unconscious body away on the security cameras?" She asked, her tone clearly indicating she knew she was being lied to.

"…well, the thing about that is…" Mad Dawg began, slowly reaching for his boot gun, when an angry voice could be heard shouting from a room over, followed by the sound of something wooden hitting a person.

"Ow!" A voice shouted in pain, getting everyone's attention.

"Hey! You can't just-"

 _Whack!_

"Ow! What gives gramps?!"

 _Whack!_

"Anata no nenchō-sha o sonchō shi nasai!" A voice shouted with a thick accent, and Mad Dawg's eyes widened as he realized who was in the base with them.

" _Oh, this is gonna end badly…"_ He mentally groaned. _"Wish I had some popcorn…"_

Suddenly, the doors off to the left were thrown open as an old, very angry-looking man stormed into the room. He was supporting himself with a wooden walking stick, but when a Deadlock member approached him, he suddenly swung it at him, using the handle to hook onto the gun and yank it form his hands. Then, in a movement so quick, he spun the staff and hit him in the back of the leg, making the gang member drop to one knee, and then followed up the attack by hitting him right in the crotch with his wooden staff. The man whined and fell over, curling up into a fetal position.

"How _DARE_ you!" The man roared, pointing a finger accusingly at Ashe, who seemed genuinely shocked by what was happening, and wasn't able to form words for a moment, finally managing to stutter out a confused:

"Excuse me?"

"You send your goons after my employee, you abduct him and hold him here against our agreement, and then you threaten him when he reacts in fear?! Did you think I would be okay with this?!"

"Kid. What's going on?" Baptiste whispered now completely lost.

"I. Have. No. Idea." Mad Dawg slowly whispered back. "But we're probably either about to die, or be given a great chance to escape."

"Odds of each scenario?"

"Fifty-fifty."

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Ashe finally asked, shaking herself out of her confusion. "Also, I didn't 'abduct' him, I recruited him."

"Yes, in the same way Scientologists recruit. With threats and manipulation!" Don Kim snapped back, before standing tall and growing very serious. It was an odd sight to see for Mad Dawg. "I am Shi Ten'nō Shimada. But you will address me as Don Kim."

Upon hearing the old man's name, the confusion in Ashe's eyes melted away into hot-blooded rage. Whipping out her rifle, she aimed it right at the old man and cocked it, Don Kim seeming to realize that his attempt at getting a confession or information out of her wasn't going to work.

"You… adult-diaper wearing _,_ corn gumming, bingo addict!" Ashe shouted. "You killed four of my men! They weren't even there on business."

"I'm sorry, I did what?" Don Kim asked, suddenly reverting to the Don Kim Mad Dawg knew all too well. Ashe narrowed her eyes and looked back to Mad Dawg.

"Do you want to explain _this_ one?" Ashe asked rhetorically.

"…He's my dad." Mad Dawg said flatly, deciding to try one last tactic before simply going guns blazing on this escape, as he was sure that not only were the Deadlock gang _not_ responsible for the Lijiang attack, but they were as confused as he was. "Okay, Ashe. I need to come clean. I-"

With a thunderous _THOOM!_ The two large metal doors that the convoys entered and exited though were smashed open as Reinhardt stood holding his giant hammer, ready for battle. Next to him, Roadhog loaded his scrap gun and Orisa recharged her blaster.

"ASHE!" An angered, southern accented-voice yelled as metallic clinking could be heard. "I'm here for my little brother."

Jesse McCree walked in as a crow call could be heard above, exhaling some smoke from his cigar as he pushed his hat up, his steely eyes narrowed, hand over his peacemaker.

"Jesse-" Mad Dawg began before he was cut off by Ashe.

"Alright kid, what's _really_ happening?" She demanded.

"Ashe, I wanted to tell you-" Mad Dawg began, but was cut off when a window was smashed and a skinny grenade rolled into the room, then a foul-smelling gas shot out and made several of the Deadlock members gag and fall to their knees. It was also clear to McCree and the others that they didn't know what was happening.

"Don't worry Dawg! I've come to save you!" Junkrat's shrill voice could be heard as he pulled himself through the window, only to slip and fall onto a crate, then bounce off of that, then flop unceremoniously to the floor. "Ow…"

Ashe had had enough by now, as she grabbed Mad Dawg and shook his aggressively.

"Tell me. The. TRUTH." She demanded, and Mad Dawg actually felt somewhat scared.

"Listen, can everyone just calm down? Deadlock isn't beh-"

"NO ONE MOVE!" Solider 76 shouted as he and several agents burst into the room, weapons drawn and ready to open fire. Ashe's eyes widened, then narrowed as she grabbed her rifle and cocked it.

"Listen! Everyone just-" Mad Dawg spoke up at bit louder this time, only to suddenly be cut off by Baptiste grabbing him, wrapping an arm around him and putting his gun to his temple.

"ANYONE MOVES AND I SHOOT THE KID!" He shouted, making everyone freeze and turn in shock to the man who none of them knew, now holding a gun to Mad Dawg's head.

"Let him go!" Pete demanded, aiming his shotgun at Baptiste.

"I'm not joking! I'm going to walk out of here, and the mutant is coming with me!" Baptiste continued.

"Mutant?!" Ashe exclaimed, the story she thought she knew now taking another wild turn.

"Oh c'mon, you _HAD_ to have known he was a mutant!" Junkrat groaned pulling himself up. "It's like, all he ever talks about! He had a six-month existential crisis about it!"

"Not helping Rat!" Mad Dawg shouted, anger rising, feeling his eye twitch and his hands shake. If something wasn't done soon, there were gonna be a _lot_ of corpses.

"For the last time, either let me go, or I _will_ shoot him!" Baptiste repeated himself, and to some of the heroes, it was clear he wasn't lying.

"Do it!" Lúcio shouted. "He'll just heal from it!"

"SHUT THE F**K UP SANTOS!" Mad Dawg now shouted, struggling against Baptiste's hold. "I CAN'T REGENERATE FORM A SHELL TO THE FREAKIN' HEAD!"

"…Oh, crap. My bad!"

"Seriously dude, what the hell?" Don Kim said.

"Hang on. Which of these guys were our undercover agents?" Junkrat asked, looking at the bikers. "Because I don't wanna accidentally kill one of them again…"

The Junker's statement sent the whole room into absolute paranoia. Without warning, the members of Deadlock all aimed their guns at the heroes of Overwatch, and a few aimed at Baptiste, and a few aimed at other members of Deadlock.

"EVERYONE JUST **SHUT THE HELL UP!** " Mad Dawg suddenly screamed, absolute, undeniable rage in his voice. Baptiste let him go in shock and everyone turned to look at Dawg, for a brief moment, his back seemed to shift into a hulking form but then quickly changed back to normal. The heroes of Overwatch looking with jaws agape as this was one of the very few times they had ever seen Mad Dawg legitimately angry. They had seen him in many different moods; happy, sad, paranoid, depressed, psychotic, caring, shy, confused, but anger was never one he showed too much of. So, everyone decided to let Mad dawg talk.

"This… this is nuts!" Mad Dawg laughed. "And I… Have a VERY high tolerance for nuts!" Mad Dawg seethed, his eyes almost comedically twitching like he was a meth addict. Slowly, he turned to look at Ashe, who seemed rather intrigued all things considered. "Ashe… I'm not Jesse's brother."

"Okay." The woman nodded, signaling for him to continue.

"I'm a mutant teenager who happens to be an on-again-off-again agent of Overwatch. I don't know who that guy is." He said pointing to Baptiste. "But apparently we have things in common and are trying to work together. Don Kim is the guy your thinking of, the leader of the Shimada clan, but he's not a crime lord. At least, not anymore. Now, he's just an old dude who I go drinking with, or play shuffleboard with, or paint kakemono with."

"It's true." Don Kim nodded. "I had no idea the attack in Lijiang was going to happen."

"And as for you guys." Mad Dawg sighed, turning to look at the agents of Overwatch. "Thanks. I mean that. You guys coming to try and save me, it means a lot, but Miss Ashe and her team here had _nothing_ to do with the attack. I can vouch for them."

76 and Pharah shot glances to one another. Uncertain of how true Mad Dawg's claims were, but willing to listen.

"Honey, I know you weren't Jesse's brother." Ashe said kindly but flatly.

"Since when!?" Mad Dawg exclaimed, shocked.

"Since you showed up." She replied flatly.

"How!?"

"Well, first of all, Jesse's daddied roughly twenty-three years ago in a car crash." Ashe began, listing things off on her fingers. "So… You can't have been born by then. Secondly, you look and sound _NOTHING_ like Jesse, and even if your mom's genetics were passed onto you, you'd still get some of your dad's. Oh, and _immediately after a terror attack an agent of Overwatch and his sidekick show up at my doorstep not a day later._ That kinda signaled there was more than you were telling me. _"_

Mad Dawg opened his mouth to respond, but then paused, mouth still open, and his somewhat agitated face turned to a thoughtful expression, then he nodded.

"Okay yeah, you're not as stupid as some of the idiots I have to deal with…"

At this point, a few of the Deadlock gang members had lowered their weapons, understand that this may just be a misunderstanding. While they were a little mad that Mad Dawg was actually an agent of Overwatch, it was also clear that he hadn't come here to try and infiltrate them, that had been an accident.

"If you knew this, why didn't you try and use Mad Dawg as leverage for some sort of deal?" Ana finally asked, her head tilted slightly in confusion.

"Well, the truth is, I was thinking about either killing him or using him as a hostage for something." Ashe replied nonchalantly.

"To be honest, I've never been a hostage." Mad Dawg added. "It is on my bucket list."

That remark got everyone present to look at him in amazed shock, even Junkrat had a face that said: 'Mate, you need help'.

"Right…" Ashe rolled her eyes. "But part of why I kept him was because I haven't laughed so hard in ages. When you and McCree started trying to do an improvised drama about your harsh family life, it was the hardest thing I've ever had to do to not laugh uncontrollably. Sure, the two of you decently acted, but you tried to push the 'abused child orphan' angle _WAY_ to hard. So, you were entertaining, and I wanted to see how far long you'd keep up the act. To be honest, I'm suspired you got this far."

"Story of his life." Roadhog scoffed.

"On top of that you make really good food. The chicken parm and chili you made was some of the best food I've had in ages. Do you know how many times we end up eating baked beans in a week?"

"Is that why this place smells worse than the guys locker room?" Mad Dawg asked, wrinkling his nose slightly.

"Yes. But the other reason is, you didn't do anything to piss anyone off. Since you got here, sure you were trying to find information on the attack, apparently, but you never hurt anyone. You were just kind of adorakable and I saw no reason to hurt you." Ashe concluded. "Even when I told you not to go into the office, I was pretty sure I'd find you there, but you never tried to."

Mad Dawg sighed and turned to 76 and the other heroes, his face somewhat stoic.

"Look, I'm not gonna say that the Deadlock Gang are saints." He began matter-of-factly. "They're criminals, sure, but I can GAURENTEE they had _NOTHING_ to do with the Lijiang attack. And from what Baptiste told me, there's a bigger problem than a gender-bent Sons Of Anarchy right now."

"So, you know about the creatures?" Pharah asked.

"Sorta." Mad Dawg frowned. "Listen, we can talk on the ship, I just need to do something real quick." Turning back to Ashe he simply said: "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I lied, we were kinda trying to find out who bombed a city square, and we figured that we couldn't just ask you… and-"

"But you could've." Ashe replied flatly, hands on her hips. "Either before or after you 'joined' if you had told us this was to try and find out how was behind an attack that killed four of my men, I would've honestly told you we had no part in it whatsoever."

"So, if the author just thought logically the past few chapters could've been avoided?!" Mad Dawg exclaimed, annoyed. "I swear, if we ever get a TvTropes page we are _so_ having 'Poor Communication Kills' as one of the listed tropes…"

At this point, everyone was good and bewildered, both by Mad dawg's… well, Mad Dawg-ness, and how calm Ashe seemed with the truth being revealed. As if to add to the OOC-ness, Ashe walked forward and kissed Mad Dawg on the forehead.

"If you ever get tired of being a hero, you can always come back here. The cabinet will be waiting."

Mad Dawg smiled and nodded, before turning and walking away, waving to the other Deadlock Members as he rejoined with the heroes. Some of the members (Especially Pete) were having a hard time hiding the tears as they watched Mad Dawg walk through the large steel doors and out into the bright Deadlock Gorge sun.

Back on the ship, Baptiste gave a rundown on what he knew, supposedly, there was what he had been calling 'The Talon Twelve'. A group of twelve of these creatures (and Mad Dawg) that he had been hunting down and killing before they could do more damage. He had begun long before the Lijiang attack, and had heard about a new hero in overwatch with powers similar to 'Husks' as he called them. Now it was very clear there were more than twelve, and they were more dangerous than the ones Baptiste had dealt with. Needless to say, it wasn't an easy thing to hear. The Heroes were all left in a state of shock at what they had been told, leaveing them unsure of what to do next.

Surprisingly, or perhaps, _un_ suprisingly though, Mad Dawg had been hit _hard_ by the news of the other well, Mad Dawg's. In the days that followed as Winston and the others came up with a plan and Don Kim, Genji and Hanzo tried to find out where their uncle was hiding, Dawg had skipped most of the meals the team had, rarely answered his calls, and wasn't present during the mission planning's. Finally, Morrison decided he needed to talk with Mad Dawg, he didn't want a repeat of the 'Bad Blood' incident happening. It took him a few minutes but eventually he found Mad Dawg out on the balcony where he would sometimes go to be alone. The old solider slowly approached and cleared his throat. Mad Dawg didn't turn to look at him but spoke.

"76."

"Listen, Mad Dawg." Morrison began slowly, trying to word himself well. "I… I have no idea what you're going through right now. What you've learned about yourself, it's… it's…" He stumbled for words.

"Almost hilarious in a messed-up way." Mad Dawg answered, surprising Jack. "Think about it. I'm a mutant death machine made by Talon, I shouldn't be alive, but I am, everyone I try and get close to gets hurt… Everything is my fault. The Lijiang attack, the Omnic Blackout… All of it."

"No, it isn't." Morrison said matter of factly. "None of that was, the blackout was an accident, plain and simple. You were trying to help people." It looked like Mad Dawg was going to say something, but Jack raised a hand to quiet him. "Kid, I get it. Weather you understand or not, you're probably living with some version of survivor's remorse, and that isn't being helped with all the crap that's been going down recently. But if you're afraid that we'll all think differently of you because of what's happening right now, you've got it all wrong."

"...how?" Mad Dawg finally asked.

"Look, things haven't always been great with you and the team, hell, even between you and I, that much I'll give you. But the reason why things aren't as bad as you seem to think is the fact that you're actively trying to change. You came back, you tried to make amends, and even what you did while looking for Virus, while not the best way to go about it, you actually had reasoning behind it." The two were left in a oddly calm silence until 76 spoke again: "If you want to sit this one out, we all understand. But don't try and carry the world by yourself again. I don't think Angela would ever forgive me if I let you do something like that again."

Mad Dawg gave a light laugh at the last remark and nodded.

"Yeah, she can... she can be scary." He admitted with a nod.

"Kid, you need to talk with someone, you're not yourself." Morrison said -matter-of-factly. "I don't think we've ever seen you this scared before."

"Can you blame me though?!" Mad Dawg laughed although it was clear he was on the verge of crying. "These… Husks, whatever the hell they are, they're what I was _supposed_ to be! Emotionless, uncaring, relentless killing machines! How am I supposed to react to that!?"

"I can't give you the answer." Solider: 76 replied, his tine somber, somewhat saddened. "I wish I could, but I can tell you you're not alone. Don't feel like you are."

"…thanks. I needed that." Mad Dawg replied, somewhat quietly. "And thanks for coming to try and save me, that actually means a lot."

"Heh, don't mention it kid." 76 said as he walked away, back into the base. After about half an hour of silence, Mad Dawg climbed off the balcony and walked back into the base. He made his way down the halls where the agents slept and suddenly kicked one of the doors wide open, starling the sleeping Aussie.

"Junkrat!" Mad Dawg declared. "Get some booze and bombs, I need to get drunk and blow something up!"

"Hell yeah!" Junkrat shouted in response.

" _It's good to be home."_ Mad Dawg thought as smile formed on his face.


End file.
